


Namesakes

by ilyena_sylph, Merfilly



Series: Abandoned Concepts [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Alternate Universe - Time Travel, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-18
Updated: 2016-11-18
Packaged: 2018-08-31 16:55:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 29,898
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8586436
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ilyena_sylph/pseuds/ilyena_sylph, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Merfilly/pseuds/Merfilly
Summary: While Anakin Solo is meditating on the past, holding Kenobi's lightsaber, the Force takes a turn at throwing a wrench in plans. What happens when Anakin meets his grandfather?





	

**Author's Note:**

> As with all stories in this series, it either was a variation on a theme or ran out of steam. In this case, it was both. But, we hope someone might get a kick out of seeing the two Anakins meet. Draws heavily on the old EU.
> 
> Also, apologies on the spacing. Google Drive has corrupted everything to have spaces after/before paragraphs, even though we have that option turned off. 
> 
> ETA: Think we got the spacing fixed, and the wild italics while we were at it!

Anakin Solo was looking forward to a long rest at the Praxeum after everything in Bast Castle. He hadn't been told what to do with the lightsaber they had recovered, since all the teachers were trying to decipher Asli Krimsan's holocron.

Eventually, Uncle Luke might remember? Or Tionne would. Either way, he found himself studying it in depth, trying to figure out why it sounded so different from his usual lightsaber. It was … sad. The song it sang to him was one of tragedy and he found himself meditating deeper into that thrum, trying to understand why the man Uncle Luke revered as such a great Jedi had been so sad.

What history did they not know in full? What had brought Kenobi to a point where self-sacrifice was the best option on the Death Star? He tried to chase those answers, seeking the Force as he held the lightsaber, wanting to understand how to rise above tragedy and remain in the Light… to not Fall…

...and the world lurched sideways on him, making him sick to his stomach. His hands clenched on the saber's hilt, holding tightly to it before the sounds of battle all around him made him open eyes he had squeezed shut in self-defense.

+++

Ahsoka had half the legion, holding the south end of a deep canyon her Master was trying to force the Seppies into and down. Master Kenobi was halfway around the planet, hammering another portion of their forces on the ground. She had Coric and Joc with her, along with another thirty-eight of the boys and some of their heavy weaponry; they should be able to hold anything Skyguy chased to her. 

She could hear the fight, echoing down the walls of the pink-green canyon, and then... then the Force went wild around her. It pulsed, twisted, rang and sang -- and she found herself blinking up at Coric, leaning down over her with worry in his amber eyes. "Commander?" 

"I... I dunno, Coric," she answered, hands up to squeeze her montrals until they quit ringing. Only then did she take a hand to get up. "The Force... Something's happened. No... something's _here_..." 

"Should I comm the General, sir?" Coric asked, not doubting her ability, but worried for the paler colors in her lekku. "I can probably detach two men to investigate with you; we're holding steady right now, but that line is advancing fast."

"No, don't distract him," Ahsoka shook her head, "comm Fives, tell him to pass it on in a lull. And yeah, I need to go check this out, but just Quad can go with me. I'm all right, Coric. Get Quad up here so I can go figure this out." 

She stared out into the canyon, trying to see what the disturbance was, what was calling to her... had to be past that first curve, though, since she couldn't see anything. But the sounds of the fight were coming closer by the minute.

Quad was at her side in a moment, rifle in place to escort her, though his blasters were strapped to his thighs. "Reporting, Sir!"

Coric had moved to take a better vantage, giving Ahsoka a quick hand sign once his binocs were focused enough to give him the full view of the field he needed.

+++

Anakin was trying to pull himself together, to not lose heart even as the sound of fighting only increased. His Force senses told him this was real. He was not in his room. He had Kenobi's lightsaber, not his own, and there was a lot of turbulence in the Force around him.

People were dying.

He tried to take stock, scrambling for a better vantage, only to feel a warning to stay low, as someone stronger in the Force was approaching.

Ahsoka moved fast up the canyon -- there was someone else alive in this canyon, and she needed to find them before the droids did -- with Quad at her four o'clock. Her eyes swept the canyon every time she took a stride, listening to the area. Where, where... the Force whispered to her, and she turned. She didn't hear anything, but once they'd rounded the bend, her third sweep showed her a mostly-hidden form. Mostly hidden wasn't, though, and she turned that way, running towards the hiding person. 

She slowed a few paces away, calling out softly, "Hello? Hello, can you understand me?" 

"Yes?" Anakin slowly stood up, cursing himself for failing to mask his presence better. He had no way of knowing… but the person was a non-human, not much taller than he was, all orange and white and blue with lightsabers… and then he saw the armored figure on her heels.

Fear swept through him, and he had to struggle to lock it down. The armor wasn't pure white; there were blue markings on it and the helmet, which looked less like a stormtrooper helmet and more like something a bounty hunter might wear. He tightened his grip on the lightsaber hilt, only barely keeping himself from igniting it.

He wasn't a baby anymore. He was a Jedi student, and he was skilled with the Force now.

Ahsoka blinked, startled at finding a human that wasn't a _vod_ or one of her Masters here, this wasn't a world that had much of a human presence, but okay, human and spoke Basic, good signs. What wasn't a good sign _at all_ was that he didn't look any older than Caleb. He couldn't be more than thirteen, and that was being generous. The lightsaber at his hip, one hand warily curved around it, was completely confusing -- no Padawan would be on this planet without her knowing it, and he should be with his Master anyway, if he was this young. She officially did not like this, and she had to get this youngling out of here before her Master drove the fight to them. 

"Oh, good, most of the locals don't speak Basic. I have no idea what you're doing out here, but you're in danger, a lot of it. That battlefront isn't going to take much longer getting here. Come on, let's get you to safety, okay?" 

"Are you sure it's safer with you?" Anakin's eyes slid to the trooper. "How do I know you two aren't an Imperial trap for me?"

"A what?" Quad asked incredulously. "You're a _jetii_ , sir. Unless you switched over to the Seppies, no _vod_ would ever do harm to you."

Ahsoka's lips had tightened as the boy looked warily at her _vod_ , but then his question made so little sense that she was grateful Quad actually got a comment in ahead of her. It gave her a second to study the boy again, to stretch out and read his signature. She didn't feel the Dark Side, which was at least one plus. "Pretty sure you're safer with me and the boys than you will be against the tinnies, yeah. Come on, we can discuss this once we're _out of the way_!" 

She beckoned at him urgently, now able to see the first reflected glows of blaster fire. 

Anakin moved in their direction, still wary, but he had his… well, his borrowed lightsaber. "Alright. I'll go." He stayed on the balls of his feet, ready to move, ready to run from them as his head tried to wrap around the strangeness of the trooper's armor, the fact this Jedi (if she was one) was unknown to him. 

He followed their lead, itching a little at the nape of his neck when Quad took up rear-guard, rifle at the ready, even as they picked up a jog, following Ahsoka back through the canyon.

Who was this boy? 

The question repeated itself several times in the trip back down the canyon, and she felt more than heard him jerk to a stop as they rounded the corner and he saw the line across the canyon. She turned on her heel and kept jogging backwards, trusting herself to remember the path. "Come _on_ , kid, I've got to get you safe before the tinnies get to us and I've got work to do! Quad, go on, tell Coric and Joc we've got... not more than four minutes before they're around the curve. Wake up anybody grabbing a nap while you're at it, huh?" 

"Yes sir!" Quad told her before picking up a full run, moving easily in his armor to do as commanded.

"I can fight," Anakin found himself saying, something in that willing obedience in the man cutting across his suspicion. It felt less compelled than most Imps he'd run across. "I just don't know where we are or who is who in the fighting!" he said, frustrated, and letting it bleed into his voice. "I was just in my room at the Praxeum, meditating!"

"At the what?" Ahsoka blinked, staring at him for a second, before she shook her head hard. "No, never mind. You're on Yeobos Six, and for like the fifth time, can we have this discussion _once you're behind my boys_?!" 

"Fine." Han Solo's son was not liking this at all, and his temper was coming up, but he understood tactical necessity, to a degree. He shut his mouth, and ran for the line of troopers, trying not to worry about the fact he was willingly putting himself in a military camp that rattled against his fears so strongly.

Ahsoka breathed a sigh of relief as she ran after him, glad that he at least seemed to have a brain in his head, even if it was obviously scrambled. Not knowing who was who in the fighting, seriously? Like there were any sides but the Republic and the Seppies? Well, okay, Hutts and the Hapans, but mostly they kept to themselves.... She took the lead in the last few strides, bounced over the line, waved at Coric cheerfully, and kept on going, heading off to the side and back. Kix was with Skyguy, but he'd been training up Sig for a secondary medic. With him and the med gear should be their safest place. 

"Sig!" she yelled from a few strides away, and grinned as he stuck his red-and-blond striped head out the door. "Found a youngling, I think he might have taken a hit on the head. Keep an eye on him for me?" 

"Sure, Commander," Sig answered, before he blinked at the apparent six-year-old behind her who looked spooked but stubborn -- and also had a lightsaber. "Hi, kid. Commander, how's it looking?" 

"Mmm, Skyguy being Skyguy, by the sound of it," Ahsoka answered, her mouth quirking affectionately. "Three minutes or so 'til we get to start hitting them ourselves." 

/Skyguy. What kind of name is that?/ flashed through Anakin's mind, but he looked at the trooper with a medic patch on his shoulder, along with the same blue markings the other trooper had been wearing… and a more recent orange square with the white marks from the woman's forehead. 

"I'm not that good at healing, but I know basic aid," Anakin volunteered, since it was obvious the woman didn't want him fighting. 

"Good," Sig said. "Always appreciate the help, Sir."

Ahsoka nodded in relief, now at least halfway sure that the youngling would be safe until she, Skyguy, and the _vod'e_ had this batch of tinnies scrapped. "Thank you," she told the boy, hoping he could tell how much she meant it. Any extra help her boys could get was more than welcome. "I'll be back to help as soon as I can, Sig." 

"See you then, Commander. Kick a few of 'em for me, won't you?" 

"Of course!" she said cheerfully!

Anakin settled in, making note of where the supplies were, memorizing the layout of a makeshift aid station, and prepared himself against the inevitable pain and possible death.

+++

Anakin had to admit, by the time he had been joined by the woman, that these men inside the armor were not Imperials by a long shot. They all radiated strongly individual pulses in the Force, helping him sort them out as their helmets came off, showing the same face, with some cosmetic differences. 

His brain told him they were clones, but the madness he associated with such beings was missing. Where was he that clones were so common? Who was the woman? He didn't know of any fighting near Yeobos Six at all!

And droid armies? Who even would use such a thing?

Ahsoka was half-grateful that Skyguy had taken off to reinforce Master Kenobi bare minutes after the last tinny had gone down. He was wonderful... but he was also pretty intimidating to anyone that didn't know him. And the boy -- who was now helping one of the _vod'e_ willingly, showing none of the fear he'd had earlier -- was spooked enough without adding Skyguy's ability to be unintentionally scary. 

She waved at the boy with one hand, while her other stayed on the _vod_ she'd run back with. She was no expert healer, not a third as good as Bariss was, but she could keep the blood in Dix's body long enough to get the wound sealed shut with just her telekinesis. She got him into Sig's hands, stayed until he started reading stable, and let go with a sigh of relief. But there were others of her men still to help, and she set to it. 

Sig, like all of the _vod'e_ medics, was helping those most likely to survive. She went to the ones that wouldn't survive without Jedi healing. There weren't many of those, for which she was grateful -- casualties had really been pretty light, considering -- but they were there. 

"I'm here, _vod_ ," she said, her hands on Joy's skin, sinking into him, "I'm here. Hang on, you hear me? You're gonna be okay." 

Joy licked his lips, trying to tell her he wasn't afraid; she was near, and even if he had to walk far away, his name would be remembered. He couldn't though, not around the collapsed lung and other internal injuries.

Anakin came closer, seeing how strongly this woman gave of herself, moving the Force with an urgency to save this trooper. He was in awe; healing was an art that Tionne was constantly searching for more lore on as it was the aspect of Jedi training that was so needed and yet so elusive for them.

He watched, studying the flow of energy, and did the only thing he did know how to do; he gave her a boost, like he would for his siblings or for his friends, when they were on long missions.

Ahsoka jumped, her concentration faltering for a moment as a new surge of energy poured into her... but then she knew where it was from -- the boy -- and she took it gratefully. She turned it into healing, turned it into what she needed for Joy, and kept working. His hold on the Force was so clean, so bright... and he had more strength to reach it than she did, right now. It helped, gave her enough, and she smiled down at Joy as his lung reinflated on his next shallow breath, pushed out against ribs she'd managed to put back together. "There... there we go, _vod_. Next time, dodge, _'lek_?" 

" _'lek_ , Sir," Joy managed, half-smiling despite the rest of his injuries that Sig would be able to help.

Anakin could hear the respect in the words, feel it radiating, and knew that this woman was held dear by the troopers. That was not something he knew to exist in Imperials, who followed orders out of conditioning, more than anything.

What were those words he didn't recognize?

"I really don't know healing, not past simple soothing and self-trance," he told her, his eyes meeting hers with a little worry that he should have been able to do more. "It's not understood enough to be taught to us kids; the masters are still learning it themselves. But you… you know it so well."

Ahsoka blinked, staring at the boy, the stranger. What did he mean, 'the masters are still learning it'? Healing was difficult, true, and you didn't learn it as a youngling, but... Master Che, Knight Nimpur, all the other healers in the Temple, they knew nearly as much about Healing as anyone could. "It's okay -- thank you. I needed the help. But no, I really don't, not compared to any of the real Healers." 

She looked towards the other critical berths -- only two, thank the Force -- and then grief hit her, because she'd lost both of them while she fought for Joy. She walked to them, looking at their faces, the -- "Still just shinies," she said, hearing her voice gone thin with regret, "but you were here long enough for tats, mm?" 

She wrote their names into her mind, before reaching to gently close their eyes. Cremations tonight, as there were after every fight... but oh, she hated it when it was their shinies. She turned away before the men could see her falter, and tipped her head towards the door. "Come on, I've got a quieter place for us to talk." 

Anakin rose silently to go with her, a lump in his throat at the deaths, at her reaction, at how much she _felt_ for these men. It might not make any sense, but he knew compassion and love when he saw it.

"I'm sorry I couldn't help more."

Ahsoka turned and looked at him, one mark lifting, "Did you do all you could? If so, there's nothing to apologize for. But thank you." 

She led him to where they'd put up barracks and her tent, back away from the line in another piece of the canyon, too tired to jog. She pushed the door open and motioned him in -- and finally, with a flash of embarrassment -- remembered she'd never introduced herself. "By the way -- I'm Ahsoka. Ahsoka Tano. Sorry about forgetting to introduce myself. Don't hold it against me?" 

"I can't," he said. "I didn't introduce myself either. I'm Anakin Solo. Anakin Organa-Solo, for my full name." It wasn't like he could avoid being known as his mother's child, or his father's, with all the publicity that had surrounded their family. "Jedi Apprentice at the Yavin IV Praxeum."

Ahoska had grinned a little at the 'I can't', but then the boy went on, and the words had her shaking her head in complete confusion. A possibility struck her after a few moments of just kind of eying him baffledly, and she asked, "Are you one of the Altisians?" 

That might explain the 'Jedi Apprentice' instead of 'Padawan', and that she had no idea who he was. It didn't explain why he didn't know what war they were in, but... it was a possibility that made more sense than anything else so far. Didn't do anything to explain how he landed in this battlefield, either. Especially with no ship. "I thought they were keeping to Bespin and the ships, though..." 

"Altisians?" he asked her, rather blankly. "What's that?" He looked around the tent, looking for anything that might help him ground himself fully. "I don't know what's going on, Lady Tano, but I just was in my room. I swear it. Just meditating on Kenobi's lightsaber, trying to figure out why it sounds so different from mine."

Ahsoka scratched at her left montral, frowning slightly at his confused expression. She'd just been getting ready to tell him she wasn't a Lady, just a Padawan, but then he said 'Kenobi's lightsaber' and she went still, her head tilting. 

" _Master_ Kenobi?" she asked, wondering how he could have found that. Her unofficial Master was still fighting on the other side of the planet, and using it, after all. Wait, hadn't Knight Eerin said something about... "I mean, I know he used to lose them when he was a Knight, but that hasn't happened in a long time. I'd know if it had, my Master would never stop giving him grief about it!" 

"Master Kenobi," he stubbornly said, pulling the lightsaber free of its clip, extending it out to her. "We recovered it in Bast Castle, and my uncle is pretty certain it really is the one used when Kenobi was killed on the Death Star." Why was she talking about the dead man like he was still alive?

Ahsoka took it, her fingers running lightly along the haft for a moment, reaching into it to touch -- those last words had her heels planting hard as her lips skinned back from her teeth. Nothing was happening to _her_ Masters, not as long as she was breathing! "Master Kenobi's not dead," she retorted, hearing the half-whistling edge to her vowels she'd been trying to lose since she was a child. "He's _fine_! And what's a 'Death Star'?" 

"What's a Death Star? Only the thing that blew up mom's homeworld of Alderaan!" he replied, a little more hot-tempered. How could anyone not know that? But… "Obi-Wan Kenobi, or Ben Kenobi, as my uncle knew him as?"

"Alderaan?" Ahsoka repeated, hearing the 'blew up mom's homeworld' echoing in the back of her mind as her lekku paled. No, _no_. The Alderaanians she'd met were good people, Senator Organa was close to both of her favorite Senators, why would anyone -- 

\-- wait, past tense, for her other Master and a world she knew was just fine? What in the **Name** of the **Force** was going on here?!

"Okay, time out, time out." She waved her hands at him, taking a breath, then two, to _think_. "I think we have a **serious** problem," she told him, "because as of my last tactical briefing, Alderaan was just fine. There's no Sep activity that deep in the Core, and hasn't been except for a couple of raids. Also, Master Obi-Wan Kenobi is," she focused and pointed, "that way, dealing with the other half of this batch of tinnies we just fought." 

Anakin all but shrank in on himself as everything started clicking into really bad, scary things in his head… but ones that led to a possible hope. What would his dad, his mom do if they were in his shoes? What would his uncle do? Or his aunt, for that matter… no, best not to copy her style. She'd probably go kill the cause of everything outright without a trial or anything.

Not that he fully disagreed, but he was twelve, and too afraid of Falling… Falling? 

His eyes snapped to the woman in front of him. "Lady Tano, can you tell me if you know Anakin Skywalker?" he asked in a desperate rush of words. He was terrified of the answer, and not hiding it very well at all.

He looked... so afraid, and so small. All of her protective instincts kicked in, even ones she hadn't known she had before she met the _vod'e_. She made a soft, soothing noise, and moved a little closer to him, before he looked up at her, desperation burning in uncannily familiar blue eyes. His question was almost too fast for her to catch, but it was hard to miss Skyguy's name. It had her smiling, relaxing a little at the thought of her Skyguy. 

"Of course I do, he's my Master!" she answered, even as she flicked the lightsaber in her hand to the nearest flat surface to him so that she could reach out for him. Why was he so afraid? 

Had he realized the same thing she had, that they had to be dealing with some kind of temporal flux or distortion or something? 

"Force, give me strength," the boy whispered, hesitating before he accepted comfort. She was a good person; he'd witnessed that already. Which meant, maybe Uncle Luke was right, and his grandfather really had been a good man once. "He's my grandfather," he told her. "I'm named for him… because Mom needed to let go of her anger at him."

Ahsoka let her arm slide around him -- then had to just stare. 'Grandfather'?! _Skyguy_?! 

"Your..." her lekku drooped and dimmed as the only answer for how he could have children came to her. "But -- he wouldn't leave us, he _wouldn't_..." 

Even if he could leave her and Master Obi-Wan, he'd never leave the _vod'e_. He knew how much they needed him. Unless... "At least, not until we win the war." 

"This is the Clone War?" he asked her, softly. "I don't know anything other than its name, and that Uncle Luke said his dad and Master Kenobi fought in it," Anakin told her. "It was before the Empire. Before the Republic fell. Before… everything bad." He glanced up at her face, his eyes very sad. "I don't know your name. I don't know any of this, because it's all part of the Lost History."

Ahsoka made a face at that name for the war -- it had caught on with the civilians, and so far they hadn't been able to stop it. She bit her tongue as he kept talking, making herself wait him out, despite her horror, her half-panic. When he'd said 'Imperial', she hadn't known what he meant, but if the Republic fell... no, _no_. She was **not** losing her men, her brothers. She wasn't losing everything so many of them had fought and already died to save. 

"That's a stupid name for it, but yes. It's not the fault of the _vod'e_ , but we can't seem to kill off the name, either. Skyguy tries, but even the Hero With No Fear isn't making an impact this time." 

She was babbling and she knew it, but that was easier than focusing on the idea of everything being such a waste, of them failing, of the Republic -- 

"You call him 'Skyguy'. You call the man I grew up with as a nightmare memory for my family, most of it, a nickname." Anakin shook his head very slowly. "This just keeps getting weirder." 

Could he stop the fall of the Republic? He felt a flash of that childhood touch of evil, the attempt made to steal his body, his potential, by the author of the Empire, and knew he had to try. It might make things worse, it might make them better. No matter what he did, it was going to change things, maybe even make it so that none of his family existed. At least not past this grandfather, the man that had destroyed so many lives.

Ahsoka reared back, her hand dropping off of him as she nearly hissed, her eyes narrowing. **Her** Skyguy, somehow a _nightmare_? For his own family, not the Seps or any slavers stupid enough to cross his path?!

"He would **never** hurt his _aliit_ ," she said, holding her words to Basic with a slight effort of will, "not _ever_. No other human Jedi understands family **half** as well as he does!" 

The boy's jaw sharpened in a stubborn look. "I'm not saying he's a Sith _now_! I'm saying he becomes one, and the whole galaxy pays the price!" he said, standing his ground. "And because mom stuck me with his name, and because that piece of vileness that is the Emperor tried to take me over as a baby, everyone is so sure I am going to follow in his footsteps! Even the cave on Dagobah showed that to me as a possible future!

"I don't want that! Any of it! I want the Republic to stand, so good people like Admiral Ackbar and Lady Mon Mothma don't have to fight all their lives! I want mom, if she comes to exist, to never, ever have to mourn her entire planet, including the parents that raised her! I want my brother and sister, if we exist, to not be kidnapped every other month during our childhoods! And if that means me yelling at the man with my name until he gets it through his head that he can't FALL, that's what I will do!"

Anakin knew better than to let his fear kick over to anger, but it had now, and he couldn't help the spill of words out of his mouth. When it stopped, he had pushed himself backwards, away from her, half ready to reach for the lightsaber and just run, even if there was a war around him.

She knew that jawline. She knew it as well as she knew the pattern of her lekku, and that knowing held her still through those impossible, enraging first words. **Her** Skyguy, **Sith**?! 

Never, not _ever_. He'd never give Dooku the satisfaction, no matter what some of the other Masters thought of him! 

The rest of the tirade, the explosion of passion and defiance and devotion... the words themselves ripped at her, sank knives into her chest and yanked. But by the time he ran out of words and was panting a little, backing away from her and looking ready to run, she was certain of two things. One, that this boy was _definitely_ her Skyguy's _aliit_ , and two, she had to help him. 

"Yelling never gets anywhere with Skyguy," she told him softly, still sitting where he'd left her, " _trust_ me. But I'm not losing my Master to any kriffing _Sith_. So I have to help you. Even though I can't imagine **anything** that would make him work with Dooku, he -- if we weren't Jedi, I'd say he _hates_ him. Him and everything the Sith stand for, everything they've done, between Maul and Dooku and Ventress..." 

"I don't know those names," Anakin said in a quieter, but not really calm, voice. His eyes still had the shadow of fear on them, but he relaxed a little, sitting so he could pull his knees in against his chest. "I only ever knew of Darth Vader… my grandfather… and the Emperor. My uncle said that Anakin Skywalker redeemed himself by killing the Emperor at the second Death Star, saving my uncle. Mom doesn't say much on the subject."

Ahsoka shook her head, confused. How could the galaxy forget Dooku? Maul and Ventress she almost understood, at least in the human populations, but _Dooku_? "Your uncle... you mean Skyguy's son? He's going to have two _ad_? Wow, that's -- tiny Skyguys... hm. Skycrawlers?" 

She was concentrating on that, on the good she could find, and not on the idea of her Master with a Sith title. That wasn't happening. Not as long as she was breathing, and she had no plans to march far away any time soon. The thought made her shudder, cold brushing up her spine as she half-heard, half-felt 'and without you?' 

"No... no. He wouldn't give them the satisfaction, he wouldn't. Not -- " 

"Skycrawlers? I'll have to remember that if Aunt Mara decides she wants kids," Anakin said, grinning a little at the idea of having a nickname to bug potential cousins with. Then he focused on her harder words, the denial ones. "I wish I knew how or why, but I don't really talk to the human Force Ghosts. That's for the Masters, or Mom, when she gets very pointed about all the things they broke or didn't write down or just because my uncle is pushing himself too hard.

"Of course, she tends to yell at them."

"Force... 'ghosts'?" Ahsoka blinked several times, though the sound of 'Aunt Mara', from Skyguy's grandchild. Then his son had a wife, somehow. "But that's not supposed to happen. It's a forbidden branch of study, too close to the Sith search for immortality, my creche-Master said. 

"That you don't know how my Master could _ever_ Fall makes it harder to stop. But we're going to," she told him, her jaw setting into lines that... probably looked a lot like Skyguy's, actually. "Kriff the 'no Attachments' interpretation of the Code **sideways** , I will Not. Lose. Him. Not like that, not _ever_." 

Anakin tipped his head to the side. "You… you love him. Like a family member. A lot like my uncle does, because he's the one that went reaching for Anakin Skywalker inside Darth Vader." It made it a little more real, that his namesake might be able to be saved, if he had people who genuinely loved him.

"And what do you mean? No attachments? The Code doesn't say anything about that. _Emotion, yet peace. Ignorance, yet knowledge. Passion, yet serenity. Chaos, yet harmony. Death, yet the Force,_ " he quoted.

She dropped her eyes, turning away to hide her profile behind her lekku, knowing they were darkening with embarrassment at being so blatantly called on her too-deep attachment to her Master, at being so blatant that someone barely old enough to be a Padawan could call her on it... 

Then he said that last, obviously quoting, and her eyes snapped straight back to him, surprise straightening her spine. "You -- that -- that's the Altisian version of the Code, the one Master Altis split from the Council over! How... no, never mind. Not important. Doesn't matter. But that's not the version I was raised with, or the one they keep trying to beat into Skyguy's head." 

Anakin pondered over that, then shrugged. "Then they're wrong, and part of the problem," he reasoned. "Because my mom and my uncle exist, he evidently had his 'attachment' somewhere, and if I was told I couldn't have my family? I'd probably be a lot less worried about Falling, if that was what it took to have them. 

"Jacen and Jaina might be aggravating bantha butts sometimes, with their twin bond and being older, but they're mine. Dad might not get me, but he's still family. I couldn't imagine not having Chewie watching over us, or Threepio fussing over us, or Winter not teaching us how to be survivors without letting on how skilled we are. They're all family, and they're all part of why the New Republic will keep pushing the Imperial Remnant back! We're stronger for our ties!"

Ahsoka's jaw had dropped half-open at that calm 'then they're wrong, and part of the problem' from a _youngling_ , about the Masters of the Jedi Council. The sheer audacity of it took her breath away, but then she listened a little more, and found herself slowly nodding. 

Everyone in the 501st knew how irrational Skyguy got if Master Kenobi or the -- or the Senator. Certainty backed by the Force crashed over her like a wave, and she knew who her Skyguy's mate was. 

"Boy, does he ever," she muttered at that, but was glad it didn't interrupt him. He just kept going, love for his family pouring from him, sounding so much like Skyguy, and it made her more sure. Because Threepio, plus fussing, meant only one being in the galaxy. "A New Republic, huh? And an Imperial 'Remnant'. Your grandmother would be _so_ proud." 

He stared at her as it clicked in his head what she meant with those words. "You… you can't mean Queen Breha; you mean whoever was their real mom! You know who my grandmother is!" Digging into that part of family history hadn't gotten too far. Uncle Luke had said once that his grandfather always lost contact with the world, if asked about her. And his mom had so much on her plate that it was easier to not investigate what kind of woman could have been involved with a monster.

"I've never met Queen Organa," Ahsoka agreed, nodding agreement. 'Real' mom set her edgy, for some reason she didn't entirely understand, but she pushed that aside. "And it's not so much that I 'know', but I know. 

"There's not a woman that likes men in the _Republic_ that wouldn't just love to get my Master's attention, even some of the Knights," she said with a roll of her eyes, "but he's completely oblivious to it. I would've thought he just didn't want that, if I hadn't seen how he gets about Senator Amidala." 

"Amidala…" Anakin repeated, fixing that name in his mind. "Is she a good person?" he asked hesitantly, afraid to hear otherwise.

"The best," Ahsoka said with a quick flash of a smile. "She's one of the loudest voices for peace in the Senate -- or out of it -- but she raises pure hell if there's trouble over the _vod'e_ , over them getting supplies or enough time to rest or... anything. And she **cares** about them, enough to risk her life with us. She's always trying to find a way to end the war, even if that means putting herself right in the middle of the war. She's... she's kind, and gentle, and -- just, _regal_ somehow, I don't know how to explain it. 

"But she's dangerous, too. The Seppies keep trying to kill or capture her, and generally she's rescued herself before we can even get there. Well, except that time with the _Malevolence_ , but that's really not her fault." 

Anakin's eyes went wide, but then there was that last, and he grinned. "Like Mom, or me and the twins! We _hate_ waiting to be rescued." 

"Doesn't everybody?" Ahsoka replied, but she could see he wasn't with her. 

Anakin thought about that, thought about the fact they had never known who she was… thought about the fact Vader's identity had been a secret for a long time until it all came out, used as a weapon against his mom's politics. He thought about belonging to a Jedi Order that didn't believe in family the way it ought to, and he saw a very ugly thing in his head.

"Would you say, theoretically, that she could be used as leverage against my grandfather? Like, if the Sith promised he could be with her and never have to worry about it?"

Ahsoka's breath stopped in her throat like Ventress had her in a Force Choke, feeling all of the color leave her skin, as that question sank a shard of carbonite all the way to her heart. She tried to swallow against it and failed, tried and failed again, and finally had to just... nod. 

Skyguy would do anything for the Senator. _Anything_ , no matter the cost -- except that the Senator would never... 

"So, what happened there? What do we have to keep from happening? Who, other than the Emperor, do I need to protect her from?" Anakin asked aloud, nevermind that he wasn't even an apprentice Knight yet, just a student. "Or maybe it is just the Emperor. He was really powerful. There was that whole thing with his clone that he came back as. And trying to steal my body, because my potential is almost as strong as my uncle's they think." He scoffed a little at that.

"Whoa, whoa, what? 'Clone he came back as'? 'trying to steal' your _body_?" Ahsoka felt a little bit like one of those mimic-frogs that were the fad on Coruscant a few years ago, and she caught hold of her temples with one hand, trying to focus. Every time this kid opened his mouth, she got more confused! 

And way more worried for her Master.

Anakin tried to figure out how to explain. "So the Sith want to be immortal. And the Emperor figured out a way. As he burned through his body, he would have a blank clone waiting, and dump his mind into it. But he didn't have to have a body made just for him… which is how he tried to take me over, apparently starting when I was still unborn," Anakin said. "I've been told the story a lot, and sometimes I have really awful dreams about it.

"It's different from sticking around in the Force to teach others and make things better, like the ghosts my Uncle knows. Not to say Sith don't leave bad spirits too; we've had a problem with possession as Uncle Luke finds more things to help us build the Order."

Ahsoka bared her teeth at the thought of those tactics, of that kind of complete perversion of the Force, and her hands flexed. She wished she had claws like the Wookies did, just to be able to flex them. "I'm glad he didn't, that you're safe. Also, that's _completely_ disgusting. Just... so gross. Maybe -- maybe that explains why some of the Jedi stayed, to be a balance against **that**.

"But who _is_ the Emperor? I mean, Dooku would _love_ that, not just a planet to rule but an entire Empire, kriff that's what he's after anyway -- but you said you didn't know his name." 

"The Emperor? It's Palpatine. Not that anyone uses that name. First, and last, of his kind, thank you very much!" Anakin said, as if rattling off a schoolboy piece of trivia.

For the first time since her accidental kill of an akul, Ahsoka Tano felt panic start to take over her body. Her breathing sped, her lekku curved backwards towards her spine, her heart started to pound as she pulled in oxygen, uncurling from her seat and up onto the balls of her feet -- all of it without her intent or ability to control. She kept her hands off her lightsabers, somehow, but all she could feel was fear. Fear for her _vod'e_ , her Master, the Order, the Senator, her _Master!_ And all she could hear was that name echoing between her montrals and her mind, over and over again. 

"Umm, I'm sorry?" Anakin offered, getting up and moving as far from the … predator, that's what she was, one that had been cornered by a more dangerous stampede … woman that had brought him here as he could. "I didn't mean to upset you."

The panic in Ahsoka's mind was enough to draw the notice of her Master. His mind intruded more fully into hers via the training bond, worried that their position had been overrun.

//Snips?!// he demanded, //what happened? I need you to calm down, and tell me what's wrong.//

The words against her montrals had been meaningless, but the presence directly in her mind was impossible to ignore or fail to understand. That was her Master, her hunt-brother, her teacher and her best friend. Worried and sharp, but blazing with the Light and real. That made her relax a little, helped her get a grip on her body's responses. 

She clutched on to the bond like it was a life-rope in flooded river, clinging to him. Here and real and safe, her Master. //Skyguy,// she whispered, desperate to keep him safe. //My Skyguy. I -- It's -- the _vod'e_ are okay. Position's still secure,// she reassured him about what was important, feeling the worry in his mind. //I...// 

How did she explain? 

//That was a pretty intense storm for them to be okay, but alright.// Her Master turned that deeply possessive phrasing around in his mind… but he was too damned honest to scold, when he was every bit as possessive over her. //Let me get Rex and Appo settled in on this side, and I'll come to you.//

//It's... I'm kind of... talking? ...to a _very bad_ future. One I'm **not** going to let happen,// she answered, leaning into his hold on her, making her body relax, finally able to use the Force to control her responses. //But it scares me.//

He would come, as soon as he could, and her clan would be just a little more whole. He would be where she could make sure he was safe, figure out how to deal with -- this. 

//Snips, did you bang your lekku again? Or ring your montrals?// The words were teasing, though, because he could feel her absolute seriousness and truth. Worse, she could catch whispers of his fear for her, fear that related to visions and futures. //I'll be there quick; swiped a droid bike.//

She didn't bother answering the teasing question, she could tell he knew she was telling the truth. //How high were you when you swiped it, Skyguy?// she asked at the comment about the bike. The play was helping, his teasing settling her down a little more. Enough that she could actually see her surroundings again, see... 

Oh, kriff, she'd scared the kid. 

//Not as high as when we rescued Aayla,// he said, which meant it wasn't far from it. He was in motion, going to handle things, letting the bond slip down to a lower level now that she was calmer.

Anakin wondered if he should really, truly just make a break for it and see if he could find someone a little more sane and put together than his rescuer. Like, maybe someone in the Consortium. But then he felt her refocus on the here and now, which pulled him down from the flight response.

"You going to be okay, Lady Tano?" he asked her.

"Yeah," she managed, pulling away from her bond with her Master now that she had her senses back. "I... think so, anyway. It's just... you have no idea why his name scared me so badly, do you?" 

"No? I mean, the Emperor is terrifying, sure, but you really went… bad." He settled back on the edge of her cot. "Is he already in power of some kind?"

Ahsoka sighed and moved to sit back down, folding up so that she couldn't jump so quickly. The innocent question made her laugh roughly for a moment, then nod. "You could say that. I mean, he's only the Supreme Chancellor of the entire Republic..." 

"Bantha spit," Anakin said to that, as he realized just what a monumental job was in front of him. Now he did wish it had been his Aunt that came through; her solution might be the only way to end this.

Ahsoka nodded slowly, watching his face. He looked like he was starting to understand. 

"But that's a long, long way from the worst of it," she said softly. "The Chancellor is pretty much my Master's _best friend_ that isn't Master Obi-Wan. Has been since Skyguy came to Coruscant, as far as I can tell." 

Now the boy, who sported a fair tan from being active and outdoors a lot, blanched as pale as Senator Amidala's makeup. He looked positively sick and after a moment, he rushed outside to take care of the sloshing acid in his stomach.

Ahsoka found a bottle of water she'd stuck in her gear, gave him half a minute, and then followed him out. She crouched beside him, trying not to pay attention to the smell, and held it out to him once he stopped retching. 

He took it, rinsing his mouth out without actually touching the bottle to his mouth. "Sorry." He handed the bottle back and used the Force to pick up dirt and cover the foulness. "I'm not Jaina; I can't get us to Byss to see if he's started building his fortress there. And I have no idea if Wayland would already be on his map, if he's not the Emperor. So what kind of proof can I give my grandfather that would be strong enough to break that kind of conditioning? Because it's there; I know it's gotta be there, if he had access."

"Conditioning?" Ahsoka asked, her eyes narrowing as she studied the boy beside her, worry sliding edged down her spine. "Also, that's the only thing you said that even half made sense, even if it makes me want to _bite_ things. Byss, Wayland? I don't know those names..." 

"Strongholds of the Emperor," Anakin told her. "Byss had his clones, among other things. Wayland… more Spaarti cloning cylinders, weapons, a bunch of nasty surprises that the Chiss Admiral got hold of and used against the New Republic before he was killed.

"Byss sits deep, deep core. My uncle flew it, and I am pretty sure Jaina could if she ever had to, but I prefer tearing ships apart and rebuilding them to flying."

"Skyguy can fly anything, _anywhere_ , if you know the coordinates," Ahsoka told him, completely certain of her Master's capabilities. "But what was that about conditioning?" 

Even as she asked, she had a nagging suspicion about the way Skyguy never would listen to the Chancellor being questioned, always defended him, even when it made him get crosswise of the Senator... 

Anakin made an empty-grasping motion unconsciously, trying to find words. "Dark Siders often start small, just insinuating things in your mind, making you soften up to their side of things. The trapped spirits pull that, sometimes, to make you willingly give yourself up to them, so it's harder to fight back when you see the real plan." He shook his head. "Believe me, Master Tionne makes sure we know as many details as possible, so we can watch each other, every time someone Falls, or we get them back."

Ahsoka stared, astounded, at those last words. "Get them _back_?" she asked, knowing that flew in the face of a dozen millennia of Jedi teaching. Every Master taught that once someone Fell, the Dark would control them forever. Drag them deeper and deeper, but never let go. 

"Did you not hear the part where Darth Vader redeemed himself and died as Anakin Skywalker?" He was pretty sure he had mentioned that part. "Master Kyp Durron might have been possessed, but he'll be the first to tell you that he felt all those emotions, and needed to do just what he did during his Fallen time. But he's one of the top Masters now."

"I heard, but I was still pretty in denial about the _possibility_ of my Master ever Falling at that point," Ahsoka replied. "Also, he's _Anakin Skywalker_. Normal doesn't apply. It -- it's actually possible to get someone back? Someone that's not Skyguy?" 

Anakin nodded. "There's no absolutes when it comes to the Force," he said. "Anyone who says otherwise is probably space-mad," he added. "I'm not saying anyone should plan on skipping merrily through the Light and the Dark, but there are ways to pull a Fallen back."

Ahsoka choked down a giggle at the 'probably space-mad' comment that -- as far as she knew -- applied to the entire Council. She was going to have to wrestle with that idea for a while before she really knew what she thought of it, but... it was a little more hope. 

"You think you're okay to come back inside?" she asked, and it wasn't hard to be gentle with the question, with this boy. "We've got to figure out a way to convince Skyguy you're real, but it's probably best if I have at least a minute or so to talk to him before he sees you, mm?

"He can be a little overprotective." 

"Overpro -- well, maybe that's what kicked in when the Emperor tried to kill Uncle Luke," Anakin said, but he nodded and went back inside the tent.

Ahsoka nodded at his back and followed him in, settling down with a foot on her knee and stretching her spine and arms. "Okay. Okay. You're absolutely certain about that the Sith you know of as the Emperor was Palpatine. Which has us a dozen klicks deep in poodoo, because he just about _adopted_ Skyguy twelve years ago, when he first came to the Temple." 

Anakin sighed very deeply at that summation. "We'll just have to hope his hypothetical family means more to him than the old guy with the wrinkled, melted face."

"I don't think anything except the _vod'e_ could possibly mean more to him than family," Ahsoka answered, "I really don't. And that you didn't know the Senator's name will do _a lot_ to convince him, even -- hang on, wait a second, I'll be right back!" 

She leapt up and ran for medical to borrow the genetic analyzer. It had Skyguy on file, and he'd believe her when she said she'd been the one to run the test, if the Force didn't just decide to thwack him over the head. 

Sig looked at her with surprise to be invaded again, but he didn't stop her, and didn't say a word. He had been resting, monitoring the men under his care, but not really needed at the moment.

Anakin waited for her to get back, wondering if everyone always did everything the moment they thought of it. It was a habit that the Masters had been breaking him of since he'd moved to Yavin IV, and one both Winter and Threepio had chided him over.

Chewie never had, but Chewie had kept up with his dad forever, and Dad _never_ thought first.

She flashed a smile at him, found what she needed, waved to two of the men that were awake, and ran back out the door and back to the kid. Not so much a kid, with some of what he said he'd gone through, but 'Anakin' was 'Skyguy', so, 'kid'. She ducked back through the door and held the scanner out to him. "Here. Give this thing a couple of drops of blood, okay?" 

"Sure." He took it and let it take the blood, curious about why. The scanner, being Jedi issue, was soon protesting about the midi-chlorian count, even as he handed it back to her. "What are you doing?"

She took it, intending to start it running the matching to other Jedi that would give her the backup on who this kid was -- and she stared at the display, making small, barely-there sounds. "You -- you're -- very definitely.... Skyguy's kid or grandkid. Nobody in the Order but Master _Yoda_ has that high a midi-chlorian count! Not quite what Skyguy's is, but... " 

"What's a midi-chlorian?" Anakin asked her, never having heard that phrase. "The idea of Master Yoda being alive is kind of cooler than Master Kenobi. I mean, Uncle Luke counts them both as teachers, but he says Master Yoda was the one that gave him the most."

Ahsoka blinked at him, wondering how anyone training to be a Jedi could not know about the midi-chlorians, but she pulled up the answer from youngling teachings -- and the gossip she'd heard as a youngling -- to give him. 

"They're microorganisms that're symbiotic with all living things. Even some nonliving, a lot of complex crystalline structures have midi-chlorians. They're not really well understood, even by Jedi, but what we do know is that the more of them exist in each of a person's cells, the more potential that person has to use the Force. No-one had ever seen a midi-chlorian count like Skyguy's before he came to the Temple, not even Master Yoda. You're about a tenth lower than his, but when he was a kid he had eight times the number a non Force-sensitive human has. 

"I have no idea what his counts are like now, he's refused to be re-tested every time one of the Healers corners him." 

"Whoa." Anakin's eyes were big with surprise at the idea of having a measurable indicator of potential. "That's really neat, Lady Tano. Do they leave or die off, though, when someone hits Force-blindness? Can you tell? Because there's some that think going Force-blind is all in the head, and others who think it should be treated like a physical injury, and then there's ones who just think they ran out of power."

"Force-blind?" Ahsoka asked, blinking as she searched her memory for anything like that. "I don't -- no, wait. Knight Ma'lia'kon, on Grolan Minor. Ze was protecting a squad of _vod'e_ when things really went to _haran_ , and ze hasn't been able to use the Force since. The healers are working with zir, back home in the Temple, but I don't know what they've found." 

"Oh." Anakin nodded a little, before his eyes flicked to the tent entrance, having reacted to the troops snapping to attention at the boundary of camp.

Ahsoka's Master had wasted little time getting to her.

"I can send and ask, though," Ahsoka reassured him, poking the scanner to make it actually do the analysis before she tucked it in her waistband and got back to her feet. She could feel Skyguy, knew he was close, and she smiled at how quickly he'd gotten back.

"Be right back, alright?" she promised before she ducked out of the entrance, her eyes swinging to find him. 

Anakin Skywalker, the Chosen One, the Hero with No Fear, or Skyguy, had come in and detoured to see the medical area before finding his padawan. He had to know, and preferred to learn directly, not from a report, who he had failed to keep safe. However, it was a quick visit, and he was ducking back out before Ahsoka reached him.

His eyes went over her, frowning at the dried blood until he realized it was not hers; hers tended to dry a different shade than that. Which was a fact he wished he had never learned. 

"You look pretty calm now," he said. "So what set you off?" He walked with her, letting her guide.

"I told you, Skyguy," she answered, reaching for his right hand with her left, moving to walk as close to him as she easily could while leading him back towards her tent. "And I'm not actually as calm as I look. I just have the start of a plan, which always helps." 

"I know you said talking to the future, but what specifically?" he asked, trying to hold his patience close. "I can't help you, Snips, if I don't have a reference point to start from." He squeezed oh so lightly with his fingers, pausing their walk so she could look at him and see how serious he was. "I won't ignore what you say about the future," he told her fiercely, his eyes blazing.

She turned, looked up at him, and saw all of that, all of his ferocity and loyalty burning there... and reached up to press her fingers against his cheek. "I know, Master. You don't ignore me, not really. Not when it's important. 

"Did you feel that really wild Force surge, before you got to me earlier?" 

"Yeah. I was just a little too busy at the time to look into it," he admitted. He let them start walking again then. "Did you get a chance to, then? I'm not sure if I should be proud of your initiative or remind you that things can be too dangerous for even my padawan?"

Ahsoka's mouth quirked at him, pleased at the praise. "I did -- after it knocked me flat, I knew I needed to go. Good thing, too. I think the poor kid would've run straight into the tinnies and gotten himself killed if I'd just sent Quad and Dix out there."

"Why?" Anakin couldn't think of anything more reassuring than a couple of Vod'e. "And 'kid' as in youngling, or just younger than you?"

"I haven't figured out what about the armor scared him, not yet," Ahsoka answered, "but something did. _Definitely_ younger than me, maybe as old as Caleb? But no way any more than." 

Anakin had to think, then placed 'Caleb' as Depa's watchdog, ahem, padawan. He really had deep thoughts about Mace Windu's sanity and Yoda's credibility that her little snap with reality had led to her being given a padawan to calm her down…

...and now he looked at the maneuvering that had given him Ahsoka a little more suspiciously, even though he was really, really glad to have her.

"So, future. How far?" Skyguy asked her, rather than pursue those thoughts.

Ahsoka eyed him thoughtfully, considering. He was old enough to have fathered _ad_ , but she knew the Senator had never been gone that long. So even if they'd started a batch the last time they saw each other, it would be most of a year before they were born. And then at least fifteen, a year, and then twelve... "At least twenty-nine years. Not more than..." she did the math again, if Skyguy's daughter had waited until she was thirty-five to have children, and then twelve, plus a few on this side, "sixty." 

Skyguy quirked an eyebrow at her. "That's a pretty big window. You didn't just ask what the trade year was?" He kept his voice light, even as his mind raced over what might be possible, depending on what the kid knew. "How'd you come up with that kind of range?"

"Probable minimum and maximum human generations," Ahsoka answered, "and I'm pretty sure it's more the former than the latter. No, I didn't, I forgot that the Hutts keep their own calendar and the Republic one wouldn't mean anything to him." 

Skyguy froze, and she felt that cold rage of his rising, before his disbelief and logic saved them both from it. "What, is he Hapan? Or from Hutt space?" Because it had to be one of those two things. He was adamant that the Republic would win, so that Padmé could fix the broken system.

She shook her head, her fingers cupping around his cheek a little more firmly. She leaned into the bond a little, pressing her trust and faith against that fury. "No. He's -- his mother grew up on Alderaan. He apparently ought to be on Yavin 4? Not that that's important right now." 

"Are you trying to say he grew up without the Republic? How?" The anger slipped its leash, though he did keep his voice low, refusing to demoralize any men who might be close. "How do I stop it?"

"You _listen_ , Skyguy. You listen to him like you've never listened to anyone in your _life_ ," Ahsoka answered, starting to shiver a little as that cold invaded her mind, but she refused to pull away. "Steady, Skyguy, steady... we're not gonna let it happen. We're not."

Anakin grasped his temper, drew it in, but the cold did not abate. It was the ice in his eyes, the stiffness in his back. He gave a curt nod, and looked toward her tent. "What's this kid called, then, if I need to listen to him?"

"First," she said, "look at this," and she let go of his hand to reach for the analyzer, holding it up between them, display turned towards him. She knew what it said, she didn't have to look first. 

Skyguy looked it over, eyebrows arching at that count… and then saw the readout on genetic match.

"He's… you're telling me… this boy is related to me?" He puzzled out the genetic confluence, and added. "Two generations away from me."

"Yeah, Skyguy. Your grandson," she agreed. "His name's Anakin." 

"Huh." Anakin wrinkled his nose. "Not a fan of naming kids after living relatives. You wind up with that ridiculousness we ran into in that one system with five generations all answering the same name." He took a deep breath, steeling himself for this meeting. "Let's get this over with so I can start undoing the future."

"That wasn't exactly a problem," Ahsoka replied, before she nodded. "Yeah, probably time. Just... be gentle, okay? He's got some pretty deep trauma, just from what he's said already." 

"Trauma? In my grandkid?" Anakin's eyes boded ill for whatever, whomever had caused it. He then shook his head and ducked into her tent… to see a kid with a slight build, dark hair, stubborn jawline… and ice-blue eyes. 

Anakin Solo stared as the tall man entered, scar over one eye. He supposed it made sense that the man was tall; most holo evidence of Vader indicated he had towered over other people. He fidgeted a little, clamping down on the need to get out of here, reminding himself that he had a lightsaber, that the tent was thin, and he could probably move fast enough to escape if he just threw a strong enough Push first.

But he was scared, even in his determination to make things right.

Ahsoka slid in right after her Master, ducked around him, and moved towards the kid, whistling soft and gentle, soothing. He was scared, she could see that in his eyes, and she didn't want that. She had to get him steady, or this was going to go to pieces way, way too fast. "It's okay, Anakin. It's okay... this's my Skyguy. Anakin Skywalker, meet Anakin Organa-Solo." 

Anakin Skywalker watched his Padawan soothing -- soothing his grandson -- and wondered at why she had to. That 'wasn't exactly a problem' had _not_ been comforting, but that look was worse. Maybe it was being loomed over? Snips had said 'trauma', and in kids that generally came from people bigger than them. He moved enough to sit down, looking at the boy with his eyes and jaw that shared his name (and apparently most of his strength in the Force, too). "Hi, kid. This whole sharing a name thing is going to get confusing pretty quick, I think. Any particular piece of it you like going by?" 

"Sometimes just go by 'Solo', like my dad," the boy said. "Especially around the politicians. Doesn't remind them so much of certain things, but makes them mad anyway, because Dad's…. well, Dad."

The boy didn't protest Ahsoka being close like that; she was nice, and she had shown him how compassionate she really was. It wouldn't be terrible to know her, at least. It was pretty hard to actually look at the man he was named for though. He'd seen a lot of holos of Vader, and the armor around this man's neck and shoulders… looked an awful lot like the upper armor on the suit Vader had survived in.

"Politicians," Anakin repeated, rolling his eyes. "There are about ten of them worth anything in the entire Senate, as far as I can tell. Sorry you have to deal with them... but alright. That works. What's wrong, kid? I don't -- well, no, I do bite, but not younglings. It's okay." 

Solo pointed at the armor before he even thought about it. "Bad reactions to the armor. That's all. I can get past it." He focused on the sad hum of the Kenobi-lightsaber, and realized there was a new note in the song he heard from it.

It sounded like hope.

He could, no, would do this.

"Sir, I don't want to upset you as badly as I did Lady Tano, but I also really, really don't want the suffering of my history to ever happen," he said earnestly. "Lots of people killed, planets destroyed or wrecked, fear everywhere… I want to change that."

"You gave my padawan a pretty bad scare," Anakin agreed quietly, watching those honest, open blue eyes. Blue eyes that were so much like looking in a mirror and back in time, all at once. "Which isn't easy to do. So whatever you have to say, I'm listening. I've got to listen, it sounds like, if I'm going to protect the Republic." 

Why was Solo having such a reaction to his armor? To the armor of the _vod'e_? 

"This would be so much easier if the Force had snatched Artoo with me," Solo muttered, missing his ability to project images.

"If Artooey was with you, things would be really interesting," Ahsoka told him, petting his hair like Skyguy would pet her montrals… and it seemed to help the boy steady further.

"I know who you are, but not that you looked like this," Solo began. "I had no idea who Lady Tano was. She had to tell me the name of my grandmother, because we never found out. And … it's all because someone you trust, apparently, is really only setting you up to be a Sith nightmare on the galaxy," Solo finally said, unable to be anything but blunt. "I can tell Lady Tano thinks it's impossible, and she loves you, and she was so kind to the men at the aid station… but I know my history. I know what I lived through, as the legacy of that history."

Anakin had had to clench his jaw at the idea of his own family not knowing Ahsoka -- as though he would ever let his Padawan become that distant? As though Snips would ever want to be? -- but then there was the comment about Padme. //Um, Snips? What did you -- //

//Puh-lease, Skyguy, you're not subtle. It's okay, I'd never tell.// 

That was even less comforting. His grandson _didn't know his Angel's name_?! How in the names of all the planets in the galaxy could **that** be? 

Someone he trusted -- there were precious few of those in the galaxy, and none he could believe would ever betray him. Solo had to be wrong, and he would **never** give any kriffing Sith the pleasure of corrupting him. He'd tasted the dark side, tasted that bone-searing cold rage, and he didn't want anything to _do_ with it. It hurt, it left him feeling hollow and shamed and miserable. "I don't -- there are precious few people I trust, Solo. And I don't want to, even can't, believe any of them could be Sith. 

"But you're my grandkid, and Snips believes what you've said. So I'm listening." 

"I grew up in the aftermath of the Rebel Alliance winning and restoring the Republic. Mom's been Chief of State, Minister of Defense… a lot of roles in the New Republic, so not really a lot of time for being Mom. But my uncle, he's told me bits and pieces about how things got to where they were from his point of view. And Chewie told me more, and Winter… Winter never forgets anything… and Threepio has told me some stories too." Solo looked up at the man that was so imposing, even sitting down to be less tall. "No one, except maybe Mon Mothma or Admiral Ackbar or one of the other really old people knows much past the fact that the Emperor rose up and made military rule the law, basically.

"And at his side, there was a Sith Lord named Darth Vader." Solo swallowed hard. "My uncle, who didn't get involved in the Rebellion until he was nineteen, came to find out that Darth Vader was the same man as Anakin Skywalker, the man he knew was his father. And he helped Darth Vader back to the Light, where Vader killed the Emperor, so my uncle would live."

He'd promised to listen. He'd _promised_ to listen, so Anakin set his teeth in his tongue and breathed in the oldest calming exercise Obi-Wan had taught him, as this boy -- his own blood-kin, his daughter's son -- said things that made less and less sense as he went on. 

The idea of a child of his (a child that must have had the Force incredibly strongly) being 'Chief of State' in a new Republic was baffling, but something he could understand, at least a little. Padmé's daughter would follow her, if the rules were -- somehow -- changed so that someone with the Force could be elected to such a position. The 'not really a lot of time for being Mom' was a little stranger... but then again, how often did he and Padmé really get to be a family? The Republic demanded much from its servants, and they gave it. 

Uncle. He would have a son, as well? How? 'Chewie', 'Winter'. Names that meant nothing to him, but then, this boy was from the future. They might not even be born yet. _Threepio_? His Threepio? 

Threepio would talk about Padmé for **hours**. No, had to be a different one. Mon Mothma. That was the name of that young Senator from Chandrila, wasn't it? Hearing her referred to as 'really old people' made him shake his head in confusion, but it applied another layer of truth to Solo's words. The truth was so often in the details, and that was so casually a minor detail. 

'Military rule the law, basically'... would that truly be so bad? It worked for the _Vod'e_ , after all. A clear chain of command, where proven skill was rewarded, recognized, and responded to with greater responsibilities, where everything **worked** and people knew what was expected of them... that didn't sound so awful to him. Padmé would be probably be frowning at him for that, but loving her didn't mean he always agreed with her. 

His thoughts screeched to a halt as the boy said 'Darth Vader was the same man as Anakin Skywalker', his lips skinning back from his teeth as his head shook. **No**. 

**_No_**. 

He would never let the dark side have control of him. It made him irrational and dangerous, opened him up to a willingness to slaughter that he _knew_ he was better than. And besides, Sith meant Dooku and Grievous and everyone that wanted to kill his wife and friends and _aliit_. 

"Skyguy," Ahsoka murmured softly, gently, "stay with me. Master, we're not going to let it happen..." 

Solo watched his namesake, saw the ugliness of the knots of coiled energy, and followed his heart as he had all of his life. He flung himself over to the man, one arm wrapping around him, the other hand coming up to rest against Anakin's face.

The darkness had to go away. No one could think with Darkness coiled in the back of their heads. He threw himself at the wrongness, battering at it… and his soul knew! It was the same evil that had touched him time and again as a baby.

//Not. My. Family!//

Anakin jerked against the sudden impact of a body, of an arm hard around him and a hand on his cheek. Solo was on him, the eyes that marked them out as kin focused on his, and that held him still. Battlefield instincts screamed for him to knock the kid away -- but he would never raise a hand to his blood, and he held still, shocked. No-one but Snips or Padmé ever really _touched_ him... 

He heard the boy's voice in his own mind, clear as a shout but not at all painful, all determined, steadfast devotion and protective strength as he attacked... something. He should push the boy away, he _hated_ letting anyone else inside his head... but he knew when someone was actually trying to help him. And whatever Solo was doing wasn't hurting _him_. 

He took a shaking breath, flesh hand settling on Solo's back, and made himself relax the shields that guarded his mind. //Show me, _bu'ad'ika_ ,// he said, willing himself to see. 

Solo moved, sudden and intent, and Ashoka followed him. He was hugging Skyguy, holding him, his slim body radiating determination and focus. What was he -- Skyguy's hand settled lightly on his back. 

Ahsoka twisted herself up onto the cot to hold them both, gathering up what strength she had to offer after her fight and the healing. Solo's determination slid into her awareness, Skyguy's confusion and denial followed, and Ahsoka closed her eyes to try to visualize the flows of the Force around and through them. 

As the fortifications that were Skyguy's defenses irised open, retracted down into a resting state, Ahsoka trilled startled fright. There was a -- something, cloying and black and rotten -- _net_ draped and half-buried in her Skyguy's mind, and Solo was trying to burn it out. 

//This, grandfather… it's him! It's the man that hurt our family, tried to murder my spirit so he could have my body and Force strength!// Mindful of Ahsoka's reaction to the identity, Anakin Solo did not place the name with the corruption. He just gave his all to removing it, to making it leave his grandfather's psyche. //Tricks and smooth words, twisting even the easiest decisions in the favor of what they want, not who you really are.//

//Tried to _what_?!// 

Nothing was more guaranteed to spark his instinct to fight than a threat to his family, and if -- if what his grandson was fighting **was** \-- 

Anakin Skywalker followed what his _bu'ad_ was attacking, throwing his will at pushing that 'net' off. The visualization came from Snips, he thought, her thigh and arm against his hip and back, and he agreed on it, trying to curl into the core of himself and push anything that felt/tasted like that _away_. Away, up and out into the flame his grandson's determination was... 

Bafflingly, a vision of the Chancellor came to mind, his friend's eyes concerned and sad as he spoke... but for some reason, Anakin couldn't quite understand him. 

//That's what he looks like here/now?// Solo asked, as fear flashed all through him. It was the kind of fear that ran core-deep, one learned before logic and reason had set in.

Anakin wanted to protest, deny the possibility -- the Chancellor was his _friend_ \-- but his frightened grandchild meant more, and he gathered Solo in closer to his body, forcing the image up and away. Whyever it had appeared, he didn't care. His grandson was so afraid, afraid and still fighting... //Shhh. Shhh, I've got you. You're okay. I don't know... that's the leader of the Republic. Chancellor Palpatine.// 

Solo quieted, letting himself be comforted, letting his fear subside, even as he kept burning away the influence. He didn't want it anywhere near his family, and if he could save his grandfather… his mother nor father would be tortured. His uncle might not lose his hand.

But it also meant his parents might not ever meet, and that made him whimper a little at the idea of his brother and sister never being born. Aunt Mara couldn't be victimized by the Emperor, but she might never meet his uncle and make him smile.

So many changes hinged on saving his grandfather… and he had to be his mother's child, accepting them as necessary to the better good of the galaxy.

Anakin could half-hear what the boy in his arms was thinking, and it poured strength into him to help, to struggle against the intrusions he could only see when he turned inward. **His** family, hurt like this? 

Not happening. 

Solo started chasing things deeper, into his memories, and now... there were more moments of the Chancellor. Tastes (of foods he never would have dreamed of before the Chancellor offered them to him) and scents (plants and the ocean, snow -- _frozen_ water -- and flowers, tropical and temperate in vases in the Chancellor's office) and colors (crimson and jet and emerald green) all pulled to the surface as they worked, accompanied with quiet murmurs, 'I see you becoming a great Jedi, my friend' and the sadly quiet 'I wish more people could see as you do, my boy' and the gentle 'yes, it is atrocious, isn't it? But there is nothing to be done... at least, not with the system as it stands'... 

He started to shake in Snips' hold, wanting to jerk away again now. 

Ahsoka, following along as best she could, trying to protect the youngling and her master, tightened her arm around his shoulder, other hand stroking over the boy's back when he dug in his own heels in the Force, intent on rooting out the evil.

//He's _aliit_ , Skyguy,// Ahsoka soothed, coaxing Anakin to follow the path Solo sketched out, eradicating the dark knots of influence he kept finding in the most innocent memories.

Solo would not let that man steal another moment of his grandfather's life, not now that he could understand, far more, that Darth Vader had been a construct all along, crafted over the course of a child's life!

//Our _aliit_ ,// Anakin managed to answer her, agreeing, leaning back into the arm tight around his shoulders as his grandson flung his will into these knots of -- he couldn't think about it. He had to let his mind go resting and still, holding on to Solo, even as it started to feel like he was taking pieces of his very soul up into those flames. 

Things he'd accepted, choices he'd made, entire chains of logic and reason were going up in smoke... and Anakin Skywalker collapsed unconscious against his padawan's shoulder. 

Ahsoka refused to panic, refused to let the sudden sag make her lose her grip on either of them. She was tired, weakened by healing… but the boy was fervently working, finding every last spot… and then he sagged too, his work as complete as he could get it.

"Not my family," Solo murmured, burrowing into Anakin's chest as Ahsoka guided them to lay back on the cot. She was left with the fact she was exhausted… but they had to be safe.

"Coric… post double guard, my tent," she said into her comm, taking rare advantage of the men by asking them to safeguard her, and her _aliit_ that were so drained.

"Yes sir!" Coric answered instantly. "Do you need anything else, Commander? The General?" 

"We'll be fine, Coric. Just… it's been a long day." Ahsoka curled up at the head of the cot, above the humans' heads, before using the Force to get Skyguy's legs more onto the cot. She then closed her eyes, keeping the bond open, and let herself rest while her master was unconscious.

+++

Ahsoka heard the electronic whirr before the comm around her Master's wrist could chirp, and she reached down for it with the Force, unhooking it and drawing it to her. Skyguy didn't even twitch, and neither did the boy curled against his chest. She slid the volume dial down, and once it had flickered, lifted it to her mouth. "Yes?" 

"Ahsoka? What's happened to Anakin?" Obi-Wan's voice was frazzled, just slightly, to one who knew what to listen for.

"That's way too long and complicated to get into on a comm, Master," she answered, brushing a gentle 'rest' across her Master's mind as he started to stir. "He's sleeping comfortably right now, but I _really_ recommend you get here ASAP. We're in my tent." 

Obi-Wan considered that, considered that Anakin was sleeping… and sighed. "I will be there as soon as I check on both my contingent and his, since he's with you."

"Of course, Master," Ahsoka agreed. That should do just fine, since Skyguy was sleeping deep and so was Solo... she was just absolutely certain that Master Kenobi needed to be here before Skyguy woke up. If she could possibly arrange it, she'd have the Senator here before then, **too**. 

"Kenobi out." Obi-Wan clicked the comm off, looked at it a long moment, then walked over to Cody. "Commander, status? I need to be out of camp, but if there's anything I need to attend first?"

"Secure, sir," Cody answered, shaking his head slightly at his General. "Everyone's either in their rack, in medical, or on watch, but shields are up. Is... everything all right, sir? First General Skywalker took straight back off, now you're going, too?" 

"Some mystery at Commander Tano's location, Cody. I should check in on the Captain before I go, probably," Obi-Wan told him. "Make certain he's got Torrent fully in hand." And reassure the man, as he doubted Anakin had.

Cody tensed slightly, but Coric was a good soldier and almost as much a veteran as Rex was, he knew what to watch for with their _jetii_. "Yes sir. See you when you get back -- or when I wake up, depending." 

Obi-wan gave him a faint smile, then went to see to Rex. He could borrow a speeder bike from Torrent, as they tended to bring a couple for camp excursions. 

When he reached the Captain, he had a hard time telling how the man was handling his general's disappearance, but then, Rex was adept at managing his emotions in a way that Obi-wan was grateful for. The man did have to deal with two volatile Jedi, after all.

"Captain, I'm en route to Anakin and Ahsoka, but wished to be certain everything was well with your men."

"We're fine, Sir," Rex answered, keeping his frustration about that his General and Commander were both on the wrong side of the planet from him to himself. Coric knew what he was doing, kriff it all. They'd be fine -- but couldn't whatever the problem was have held off until the legion was back together properly?

No, of course not. The universe didn't like any of them that much. 

"Alright. You have my comm… use it, not Anakin's, if anything comes up. Or, if I fail to answer, Ahsoka's." Obi-Wan then smiled. "Mind if I take one of your speeders to get over there?"

"Not at all, Sir. They're more trustworthy than the kriffing droid bike the General took," Rex replied, flicking a hand out towards them. "And yes Sir. Not in that order." 

Obi-Wan chuckled, clapping Rex lightly on the shoulder, before going to get underway. He did not dwell on the fact that something had happened to his former-padawan, or that his grand-padawan had apparently had to take charge of the situation. He'd know soon enough.

+++

Anakin Solo hadn't used that much Force in a very long time, but eventually the fact he was twelve years old and a growing boy overrode the wish to be unconscious, even though it hadn't been much sleep at all, it felt like. He felt his grandfather still holding him, though, and wasn't certain he should move, given how… bad things had been.

"Hi, Solo," Ahsoka whispered softly, trying to keep her voice where it wouldn't bother Skyguy. She had been lightly drowsing again, but the sound of him waking -- or the feeling of Master Kenobi approaching -- had brought her awake. "You okay?" 

"Hungry," he whispered. "And my head hurts a little; I've never done something quite like that for someone else." He then noticed the song of the lightsaber he had borrowed was different yet again, and his eyes went to the tent opening just before Obi-Wan Kenobi slipped inside.

Obi-Wan's eyes took in the tangle on the cot… where had the youngling come from? But then he took more notice of Anakin actually being asleep, and he made a small gesture, focusing along the trace of his bond, to push Anakin to remain asleep.

Ahsoka waved her fingers at her other Master, pleased to see him so quickly, before she carefully slipped her way off of the bed, unabashedly using the Force to make certain she didn't make any noise or shake the cot rather than trusting her own skills. Those were both pretty understandable, and she nodded. 

"I'll bring you a ration bar and something for the headache, okay? But if you can, please don't leave him until Master Kenobi or I get back?" Skyguy waking up alone was _not_ going to happen, it couldn't. He'd -- no, best to just not think about it. 

"Not leaving grandfather alone, no," the boy said with a yawn, voice very low, before he settled on the elder Anakin's shoulder.

Obi-Wan waited for Ahsoka to join him, moving back outside with her, before he spoke. "Did I hear that youngling correctly?"

"Probably, though I didn't know your ears were _quite_ that good, Master," Ahsoka replied, sticking close to Master Kenobi's side as she made for the mess. 

"It's quiet, and if Anakin is being quiet, I listen harder," Obi-Wan pointed out. "Your tent is small, as well." Obi-Wan clasped his hands behind his back as he walked, considering. "Is this related to the Force pulse during the battle?"

Ahsoka nodded firmly, looking up at him. "And how. Neither one of _us_ has any idea how he got from his time-and-place to here-and-now, but... here he is. Though that took us a little bit to figure out. That he'd come through or across times, not just distance, I mean." 

"Interesting," Obi-Wan said, considering that. "A grandson… close to fifty years, I would think. Unless Anakin's ignored the Padawan Lecture, or planning to soon…." He was not phased by the existence of the child, but the concept of time-travel did intrigue him. "I'm certain you did your best to unravel the mystery swiftly."

"Well, I was a little busy fighting the tinnies Skyguy left for me at first," Ahsoka replied before ducking into the mess to grab a couple of ration bars. He had said he was hungry, and she and Master Kenobi might be talking for a while. She ducked back out with them, and rejoined him. "I'd tucked him in with Sig until that was all over, and he was helping out as best he could when I got back. 

"I.... don't think I could have saved Joy without him." 

Obi-Wan brought a hand up to rest on her shoulder at that. "We really must find time for you to get through Master Che's course," he said quietly to that, knowing she threw herself into the aid station same as Anakin and himself. "So he is an Initiate or Padawan from his time?"

"Something like," Ahsoka agreed, nodding once. "He named himself an apprentice, so. More than an Initiate, I think." 

"Alright." Obi-Wan then bit the proverbial bullet. "Why is your Master unconscious, and by the feel of him in the Force, ravaged by some trauma?"

Ahsoka sighed, held up a finger as they reached her tent, and ducked back inside to hand over the ration bars. She unclipped her lightsaber and offered it to Solo, flicking her eyes at Kenobi's. "Do you mind if I borrow that for a second?" she asked, low-voiced without whispering. 

He nodded, accepting hers as a fair trade for now. It didn't sing a song he understood, but any lightsaber in a pinch. He carefully opened a ration bar and started eating it quietly, watching her go back out with the borrowed lightsaber -- and the analyzer she picked up along the way.

Ahsoka kept the lightsaber behind behind her back, the analyzer tucked in her waistband, until she and Master Kenobi had taken several steps away from the tent, then turned enough to offer it up to him, arching one marking. 

Obi-Wan accepted the lightsaber with shock; It felt like his lightsaber, looked like it, but the resonance was changed. He looked the hilt over, taking note of the scratches he did not recognize. 

"My lightsaber, but … changed."

Ahsoka nodded, looking up at him. "Solo said he'd just come off a mission to find it... from where it'd been taken after your death. I think he meant 'murder', frankly. On something called a 'Death Star', which I don't want to know _anything_ about." 

"Nor do I, frankly," he answered that. "I'd swear this is sand etching," he said, looking across the butt-end of the hilt at the fine scratching there. "Like it's seen a simoom." He shook his head. "And It's not as if I have reason to believe I'd live two more generations. It's not a quiet life."

"Would we know what to do with it if it was?" Ahsoka asked, reaching back to worry at her beads for a moment. "Anyway. You asked about Skyguy. Solo... told me about his future. One where there were almost no Jedi left alive. Where -- where the Republic fell, and an Empire took its place.

"I couldn't believe it -- especially with what he told me about his family." 

Obi-Wan found a place to sit, dragging her down beside him, both out of the way and able to relax somewhat. "No Jedi? No Republic?" The man had to reach up and stroke his beard, trying to maintain calm and consider the data at hand fully. "Well, we'll most certainly have to fix that."

Ahsoka nodded, before she burrowed in against his braced knees. "I think Skyguy and Solo already did a lot to put a stop to it ever happening... but not enough. Because... I know who Dooku's Master is, Master. And it terrified me straight into a panic attack." 

"You don't panic easily, little 'soka," he said, purposefully using the nickname to put her more at ease, shifting so that she could be comfortably in contact with him. It was often hard to remember, because of her competence, but she was still as young, or younger, as he had been during the crisis with his own Master. "Knowing who the other Sith is… that would go a long way to ending things, perhaps."

Ahsoka's mouth quirked. "Thank you, Master. I try not to. But -- the Emperor, the one that had a Sith Lord for an enforcer, and was Sith himself... before that, his name was Palpatine." 

Obi-Wan's entire body stiffened, and there was only silence… though Ahsoka did feel him bring his shields up very swiftly around his shock, to try and keep Anakin safe from it. He held her close, working his head around that impossibility, working his mind around….

"ANAKIN!" He looked down at the girl, his eyes searching hers. "He's been at risk all this time!"

His voice was low, intense, and Ahsoka was relieved by that. The last thing they needed was Skyguy pushing through the assorted 'sleep' suggestions because Master Kenobi was yelling. She nodded miserably, looking at the vicious set of his jaw and the blowtorch-blue shine of his eyes with a flicker of shock. Master Kenobi, the one everyone said lived most by the Code... loved her Skyguy as much as she did, maybe more.

"That's what they were dealing with. Everything that -- no, you get upset when I swear, I won't -- miserable treasonous excuse for a human being," she decided that almost covered it, "had put into Skyguy's head. Nasty little Dark Side tendrils all woven and tangled into his head..." 

She shuddered, remembering the sight of that in the Force, the net of suggestions and manipulations that had made all of Solo's words start to make sense. 

"You, and the boy, got them all?" Obi-Wan would sweep through Anakin's mind… if his former padawan allowed it. He would try hard to convince Anakin to allow it, even on pain of it breaking the rapport they had been building, to be certain. "I cannot believe we all failed to see it! So many things fall into place, if you posit that he's been behind them!" He could not help but let one hand curl in a fist, recalling those that had been most in danger because of the machinations, besides the costs of this war on men and planets and innocents!

"I think so," Ahsoka answered, her fingers sliding to rest on her other Master's clenched fist, "but Skyguy kind of passed out in my arms before Solo was done, so... I can't be sure? They were doing the work, I was just bolstering. ...okay, and keeping Skyguy from lashing out when Solo got too close to one of the really deep knots. 

"That's why I wanted you to come before he could wake up. He's not going to want to let me, or his _bu'ad_ , see him vulnerable, but he -- I don't think he can deal with a betrayal like this alone." 

Obi-Wan nodded. "Give us a moment for me to get my emotions reined in, Ahsoka, and then we'll go back. You take the boy -- I am afraid Anakin and I will be taking over your tent -- somewhere else, and I'll manage the rest." He put the future version of his lightsaber in her hands. "I won't let Anakin be hurt further by this, not if I have any power at all about it."

"If it only takes a moment, you're doing a lot better than me," Ahsoka told him, before she accepted the lightsaber back. "Solo and I'll find somewhere to curl up in." 

That would probably be a lot easier now that he knew her Skyguy had been manipulated and twisted into becoming the monster in his thoughts, and she wouldn't want to bite him for saying that dreck about her Master. 

Obi-Wan smiled sadly at her. "I hope you never get practiced at making the pain of loss or betrayal sting less, Ahsoka." He hugged her gently, sharing what comfort he could for her. "And it is always easier when someone may have need of you." He indulged in a basic breathing exercise then to find his calm, for Anakin's sake, when he wanted to fly for the Temple right away with his former padawan. Palpatine had to be stopped!

She cuddled against him, letting herself join in the breathing exercise for a while. That made sense, about someone else needing you making it easier. That was always what kept her going, knowing the _vod'e_ were counting on her. When he stopped the exercise, she was enough steadier that it was easy to get to her feet beside him, and head back to her tent. 

"You have done well, Padawan," he praised her, before they slipped into the tent. Solo raised his head up, and then realized it was time to leave his grandfather with just a quick toss of her head at the flap. He managed to extricate himself, the second ration bar, and her lightsaber by dint of the Force and some natural athleticism, retreating from the bearded man in partial armor.

Obi-Wan waited for them to get clear, then settled on the floor, his presence opening to Anakin, to wait, letting his former padawan sleep as long as he was capable of.

Ahsoka headed for one of the real fires the _vod'e_ liked to build when they were going to be on the ground, trading the lightsaber for hers again. She made sure they were several barracks away before she said softly, "Sorry I didn't introduce you, but I don't think Master Kenobi has attention for anyone but Skyguy right now." 

"It's okay. I just want him, my grandfather, to be safe, and I could feel the Master wanted that too," he answered her. "Thank you for the food. It's not bad." He opened the second bar to nibble on it, managing to clip the lightsaber back in place.

"The _vod'e_ say they're pretty good, so I take their word for it. Too many carbohydrates in them for me," Ahsoka shrugged -- and thought better of heading for the fire, at least for a second. "Actually, if we're going to talk, we probably need to _not_ be right up under a squad or two. If you want to rest some more, though, we can go on." 

"Do you want to talk? I'm not sure I really do. I mean… saving my granddad means a lot of changes, and I really don't want to think about some of them," he told her. "And you didn't get very much rest either. So… sleep?"

Ahsoka reached out and squeezed his shoulder lightly. "Good points," she had to agree. She wanted to see if he knew anything else that could help them destroy Palpatine, but... he'd had to face a lot of his nightmares already today. She could fill her... great grand-nephew (what was the 'great' prefix or suffix? _Ba'ad_ for nephew, but -- maybe Rex could tell her later) in on what he called 'Lost History' later, too. "Definitely sleep." 

He smiled up at her, a little wistful, but he was doing his best to block out thoughts of lost family. If everything worked out for the Republic, his mom would grow up with his uncle, and that would be a good thing. And Dad always landed on his feet, right?

"Do you think I could ask granddad to find a kid in an orphanage, after he's done kicking butt?" he asked. "Help that kid get a better life?"

"Absolutely," Ahsoka answered, knowing Skyguy's mile-thick soft spot for kids in trouble, "though you can ask me, too. Who is he?" 

"My dad. If the Empire doesn't happen, he doesn't escape by going to the Academy. And then get on the Empire's bad side by freeing Wookiees, which earns him Chewie's friendship for life," Anakin told her. "He was the best smuggler, but… he was also a great general, a lot of the veterans say. Reckless, crazy, and tough, by some." Anakin did love his father, as much as he did his mother; they just didn't always connect. "Han Solo. And he's about ten years older than my mom and uncle, so… I think he's already alive? On Corellia."

Ahsoka's eyes narrowed in the dark, that 'freeing Wookies' setting alarm bells off in the back of her mind, but... it was never going to happen. The Empire was _never_ going to be. Not if she had to rip that kriffing Sith _hut'uun_ 's head off his shoulders with her teeth. 

"Chewbacca?" she repeated, startled, holding her hand up well above her head, trying to get her hand high enough to indicate Chewbacca's impressive stature. "Blue eyes, darker across his shoulders and down to his elbows? From Rwookrrorro?"

Anakin grinned at her. "You said that pretty well. Yeah, Chewbacca. He's my godfather." If she knew Chewie, then maybe the Force would see things through, and the right people would meet after all. "He's great."

"He sure is," Ahsoka agreed, grinning happily at having not mangled the pronunciation too badly. "I don't know _what_ I'd have done without him when we all got kidnapped by those filthy scheming slaving cowards... we'd never have survived if he hadn't managed to kitbash a transmitter together to reach Kashyyyk. I mean, I might've, for a while -- jungles aren't my preferred habitat, but I can manage. The younglings, though, they were... pretty much at the end of their strength."

He looked at her in awe to hear a story of his godfather from before they were a family, then smiled broadly. "Most of the Falcon's mods were Dad's doing, but Chewie was damned good at keeping them functioning too." He shook his head. "Sleep, right… but I wouldn't mind hearing anything else you know about him when we wake up."

"I don't know much, but I can tell you the long version later," she agreed, before stretching out a little more comfortably on the canyon's floor. 

Anakin stretched full out on his back, a little weirded out by sleeping in the open… but this feeling of protection was all around him, like the men were projecting confidence in keeping the two of them safe.

++++

Obi-Wan stirred from the half-doze he had fallen into as Anakin began to come alert. He shifted from the floor to the edge of the cot, down by Anakin's legs, so that he would be visible. His face was a mask of worry and concern, holding back nothing in the face of his former-padawan's vulnerability.

"Hello, my friend," he said softly, resting a hand on Anakin's thigh.

His head hurt and his arms were empty, Anakin realized while he was still half-asleep. Not unusual, but he could remember warmth, a body tucked to -- 

\-- Obi-Wan's voice, his touch, snapped him the rest of the way awake. His Master was looking at him so strangely. Like he'd just been in surgery, or was coming out of a fever, concern and worry alike written in his eyes and the shape of his mouth, the tilt of his head. Why? 

He couldn't think of anything. He'd gone to check on Snips, she'd panicked earlier, and then... his brows knit across his forehead for a moment. And then... then a boy. A boy with his eyes and jaw and a terrible story. 

A story that he had gone Sith, had betrayed his family and his Master. He hadn't wanted to listen, but he'd been trying, when -- 

\-- when his own mind became the battlefield, because his _bu'ad_ had sensed the Sith touch in his mind and attacked it. 

He reached silently for Obi-Wan's hand, making himself look at the memory of that. Of his grandson's fear and protective fury, of the slow revelation of **who** had laid all of that into place. Of realizing that the Chancellor, the man he trusted most, had done nothing but manipulate that trust in order to twist him, to make him into... into one of them. He swallowed against nausea, and his fingers clung to his Master's hand. 

"Hi?"

"Oh, Anakin," Obi-Wan said so softly, his voice gentle and kind. "I am terribly, terribly sorry, Anakin, for not seeing the danger, for not keeping you safe." He let his fingers lace with Anakin's to show he meant it, that he would offer any support it took.

His own temper was held fully in check; Anakin was in no shape to go with him to the Temple and deal with this yet. 

Soft voice -- the actually soft one, not the one with an edge behind it that meant he was in for an earful later -- and his Master's fingers tangling with his, support in the hold... Anakin breathed a little easier at that, even though the apology baffled him. He blinked, shaking his head a little -- quickly stopped, because that hurt -- even as he tugged a little. 

"You did try to warn me about him," he pointed out. That he could remember. Just like he could remember thinking it was baseless and almost jealous, too. "I wouldn't listen." 

And when had 'wouldn't' become 'couldn't'? Did it matter? 

He decided it didn't. And where was his grandson, anyway? "Where's Solo?" 

"Our padawan took him to get some sleep," Obi-Wan said before he followed that tug, lying along the edge of the cot behind his friend, his brother. "She fed him too." He did not let surprise or any other emotions to color his voice; Anakin didn't need to be teased, yet, over his dynastic future. He let the younger man decide how to move then, once he was stable along the edge of the cot.

That was good. Snips could and would take care of his grandson. He nodded, blinked as Obi-Wan stretched out next to him -- _that_ never happened any more, hadn't since he'd started getting his height -- and then let go of his Master's hand to move and bury his cheek against his Master's shoulder, arm wrapping behind his back. 

At some point since he'd last seen him, Obi-Wan had lost the chest and shoulder armor, and Anakin was grateful for it. The tabard was heavy, but at least it wasn't armorplas. "My head feels full of holes," he said against the cloth. "And I want to shower for, I don't know, a _month_." 

"If this were a normal day, I would say something about your head and holes. But it's not." Obi-Wan brought a hand up to stroke the dark hair. "We'll just have to make certain Ahsoka can hold the campaign here and get you that shower on Coruscant."

"We are _not_ leaving my padawan alone when this kriffing planet needed two legions," Anakin protested, pushing his head back into the stroke over his hair to try to cover the way he'd flinched at the idea of going to Coruscant. He didn't like the planet-wide city all that much on his best day, and now, knowing that the Chancellor was a Sith Master…

"We have to take this to the Council, Anakin. We cannot trust comms. Or do you prefer we send Ahsoka? That actually might raise less suspicion. After all, when was she last back for tests or Temple classes?"

Obi-Wan did shift to better cradle Anakin on his shoulder.

Anakin snorted at him. "I know we need to take it to the Council, Master. But leaving Ahsoka here, even with Rex and Cody to back her up... we had too hard a time retaking this world for that. And no, I'm not going to hide behind my Padawan, either." 

The really awful thing was that he wanted to. Letting Ahsoka deal with telling the Masters how Sidious had been uncovered sounded so much easier than doing it himself... but the easy way was rarely right, and his Padawan didn't deserve to be thrown in the deep end just because he was feeling betrayed and sorry for himself. 

"...any chance Master Fisto's near this sector?" 

"I'm certain he could be. The last I knew, he was reinforcing Master Koon in the blockade effort, but he can be asked." Obi-Wan closed his eyes as he laid there. "Ask him to come back Ahsoka up, and we go? Or him to escort her? It's your choice."

"I'm not sending Snips just because the idea of being within an AU of _him_ has me as shaky as an unbalanced gyroscope," Anakin replied, shifting to get tucked a little closer against his Master's solid body. Well. That or put his lightsaber straight through the _hut'uun_ and let the cards fall out as they would... that was tempting, too. "But Master Fisto would take good care of her and the men, plus he's on the move so often that it won't look strange." 

"As you wish, Anakin." Obi-Wan's hand carded through the dark hair lazily, as his mind contemplated the next steps in this fiasco. "We'll need to apprise Padmé as well, and let her pick who among the Senators can best work with this knowledge."

"Oh, no," Anakin said, closing his eyes as concern flickered its way down his spine, "she's going to lose her _mind_ at this! We'll be lucky if we can keep her from resorting to... well, aggressive _tactics_ , since i don't think negotiations are going to be anywhere in the mix." 

"Hmm. Do you think you and I could keep him busy long enough to give her that shot?" Obi-Wan asked, perfectly seriously. "After, of course, we unmask the man? Because I sincerely doubt this is going to be resolved in anything approaching a civilized manner."

Anakin considered that, staying burrowed in against his Master's shoulder. His instinct was to shriek at the very idea, but... she hated when he got overprotective of her. And she had so much reason to be angry. "...I don't know, Master. I mean, we are talking about the man that trained Maul, and he's obviously been in close contact with Dooku. But... when is he practicing?" 

"A good question, but I refuse to approach him without believing him at least on Dooku's level. As I cannot see my Master's teacher belaying his own arrogance long enough to not destroy an inferior swordsman." Obi-Wan was still nettled that he could not, despite being a master of Soresu and highly proficient in the other forms, match the Makashi fighter alone.

"No," Anakin agreed after a few moments of thinking, "I can't see Dooku holding back on that, either. If he _could_ take him, he would." He could feel that his Master was chasing something, so he went quiet, waiting. 

He hummed quietly, considering. "I do wonder at when Palpatine meant to make it clear to Dooku that his services were no longer needed. That he was merely a stepping stone."

For a second, the words didn't make sense, and then they _did_ , and Anakin's head jerked up to stare at his Master's eyes. Dooku, leader of the Separatists, ruler of a wealthy planet, a powerful former Jedi and now Sith, nothing but a stepping stone? The thought was so audacious that he almost laughed out of pure incredulity...

...and then a few moments during the war lifted to the surface of his mind. Encouragements to be more decisive, to take a bolder approach, to ignore the Jedi ideals in favor of what he called practicality, pragmatism. Moments that had pulled him towards the Dark Side, he knew now. He frowned, considering... and an answer suggested itself to him. "This might be arrogant, Master, but I don't think he was planning on doing it himself. 

"I think Dooku was meant for me." 

Obi-Wan sighed ever so softly. "In this case, my friend, it is not arrogance in the least. And your saber skills are steadily growing past my own, in certain regards, so yes, in time, you will be able to defeat him, I believe."

He grew quiet again, considering that. "I believe, Anakin, that I should attempt to work Ventress's interest in me, the next time we cross her path, to see if she can carry word back that we know the Sith Master intends to betray Dooku."

Anakin grumbled quietly, disliking the idea of his Master doing anything to encourage that -- that harpy -- in her interest... but she _was_ their best chance of communication with Dooku. He couldn't actually object, given that sowing dissent in that alliance might be their best chance of ending this war before ---

Before too many more of the _Vod'e_ died. Died in what was _nothing_ but a kriffing Sith shell game meant to frighten the idiot population of the galaxy into submitting to one man's rule over them. 

He was going to _kill_ that motherless spawn of a krayt and a dungheap. 

"Mind your anger, Anakin. I think it serves _him_ too well," Obi-Wan warned, but it was a quiet warning, with no censure in it. "We will end this. But the pressure, I think, must come from the political side, given how adeptly the HoloNet has smeared Jedi reputations over this entire war."

Anakin took a breath, then another, making himself relax, come away from the hot taste of his fury. Obi-Wan was right, he couldn't let that rule him, not when it would play right into Sidious' plan. It took a moment for him to realize that there was no sour edge in his mind at admitting his Master was right, no frustration... 

"As you say, Master," he agreed, as he burrowed back in against Obi-Wan's shoulder. He wasn't certain why Obi-Wan was still letting him be this close, but it was helping with both the headache and how shredded his heart felt, so he wasn't complaining at all. No, he was just going to take advantage of it while it lasted. 

"I think sleep is still in order, Anakin," Obi-Wan finally admitted. "We both need clear heads; Kit can wait until after we have a bit more sleep."

Anakin blinked, surprised, and lifted his head again, looking at his Master and brother with a momentary tilt of his head. He was so accustomed to thinking of Obi-Wan as serene, as such a perfect example of proper Jedi serenity... but no, his Master wasn't serene now. Because of him -- and not because he was the one screwing up and annoying him. 

He'd have laughed in even a _vod_ 's face yesterday at the idea. "You're right," he agreed as he settled back down, refusing to let go. 

"I often am," Obi-Wan said, more out of habit than any need to prove it, curling on the cot with his former padawan, praying the Force gave them the time to settle and calm.

"No comment," Anakin said wryly, breathing his Master's familiar scent and letting the warmth radiating from him soothe his blasted-raw nerves. Much sooner than he would have believed, he was asleep again. 

+++

Kit Fisto had readily agreed to come back up the young Commander, when Obi-Wan had gotten hold of him after they woke again. He would arrive in less than a day, having been fairly close.

The Seppies, though, had decided that everyone had been more than rested enough, and launched a vicious counter-offensive about the time Obi-Wan and Anakin were en route to meet up with Ahsoka and Solo.

"Cody, report?" Obi-Wan demanded, to see if it was both ends of their lines, or just here, even as he readied to fight alongside Anakin.

"Quiet, sir," Cody answered immediately, his voice a little puzzled. "Isn't it night where you are?" 

"Not anymore, as far as the Separatists are concerned," Obi-Wan said with a sigh. "Keep a sharp eye out, Commander. We'll handle this end of things." He ignited his lightsaber, the blue a piercing glow to go alongside Anakin's. More distantly, he saw another blue lightsaber near the twin green and yellow glow of Ahsoka's.

"Yes sir!" Cody answered. "Should I send the other half of the 501st back your way, sir?" 

Anakin heard the question and shook his head. No, they didn't need to waste the time in mobilizing and getting here. There were four Jedi and five lightsabers on this battlefield, the Seps weren't going to know what hit them as soon as he got started. 

He had... rather a lot... to get out of his system, after all, and now there were battle droids to work it out on. 

"Tell the good Captain we're fairly certain we have it under control, Cody," Obi-Wan said fondly. "Kenobi out." He followed the lead of his brother, letting him guide this fight.

Near Ahsoka, the younger Anakin was doing his best to grasp ground warfare in a quick hurry, listening to her explanations of each kind of droid. Then he saw the tanks, and realized that he could be of greater use than just swinging his saber. He let his senses play out over the tanks, listening to the flow of energy with the Force, and traced back to the main power source on one. A little concentration… and he pushed the containment just a little off-balance, resulting in a chain reaction that crippled the tank's mobility.

"Yes!"

"Whoa!" Ahsoka yelped, staring as the tank twisted onto one of its sides, the turret swinging through a group of B2s and sending them sprawling, "what did you just do? That was awesome!" 

"Pulled the power supply out of alignment," Solo told her, grinning. "Want me to keep doing that?"

" _Hell yes_!" Ahsoka replied, grinning as she darted forward a little, enough that she should draw fire from the droids to her instead of her men. She wanted to be up there beside her Masters -- but somebody had to stay close to the men and to Solo, so fine, she was on defense. 

Anakin Skywalker sank himself into his instincts, letting go of all conscious thought to fall into the fight... and danced through the droids, taking limbs and processors and cores one after another, vaulting up onto the taller machines and springing between them. There was a leader on this field, a sentient -- he could feel them, a difference ahead -- and that was his eventual target. 

Obi-Wan followed, his moves a dance of a different kind, one that wasted no energy that could be conserved, one that disabled and destroyed as surely as Anakin's path did. He was quick to throw the larger droids into the squads of smaller ones, or to leap up and balance on a B2, drawing the droidekas into firing on their compatriots by accident.

Solo was having fun breaking the tanks; each time one lurched, it tended to take out a small group of the droids. It didn't mean he neglected his defense; a couple of times he had to let go of the energy flows to merely redirect blaster fire, or slice through the droids' connection points. His saber use was good, if a little contained to Ahsoka's way of thinking.

On edge of the encampment, watching the _jetiise_ at work and taking the shots that wouldn't endanger one of them, Coric just shook his head. The things the Generals could do never ceased to amaze him -- but today General Skywalker seemed to be on another level entirely. There were moments his eyes couldn't keep up with his General, where the lightsaber left solid arcs of its passage hanging in his vision, and when gravity seemed only the mildest suggestion. 

"...anyone know what's got the General turned to eleven?" 

"Not a clue," Quad called. "Unless that kid the Commander picked up had something to do with it," he added after a moment.

"Let's look sharp on not getting tagged then!" Jesse yelled at them all; he knew that if the General was in a mood, it was best to not be stupid and inflate the casualty report.

Between Anakin Skywalker's relentless advance and Obi-Wan's patient, persistent support to him, the Separatists were realizing they were in over their head. The tank that the commander was in started to retreat, and Ahsoka was on a rise, just able to see. Her master wasn't quite close enough, but could the kid stop that tank?

"Solo, up here!" she said, and the boy made the jump, with some effort, as it was a different use of the Force than usual for him. He sighted along her pointing arm, and saw the tank in question. It was at the extreme end of the field he could see, but… he could see it.

Trusting her to keep him safe, he focused on that tank, reaching for the power flow, tracing it back. More shielding, he realized, as if that tank was meant to be more powerfully protected for its inhabitant. That made him growl; droids weren't meant to be cannon fodder!

With a wrench, he pulled the power unit out of alignment, causing a minor explosion inside the tank that sent the commander scrambling to escape… into Anakin Skywalker's view.

Anakin had noticed the tanks suddenly going haywire throughout the fight, but hadn't been worried about it. Now his quarry was on the field -- a Muun, bafflingly enough, and one he didn't know -- and he destroyed the droids in his way. The true problem here was the Muun, and that was who he had to capture. 

Capture... and let Obi-Wan question. If they could get this Muun to turn... He shook off the thoughts as he got within a meter of the Muun, calling, "Stop and live, commander," and he tossed a droid backwards. 

The Muun was not interested in parlay, only escape, ordering the droids nearest to converge on the Jedi and destroy them.

"I don't think he wants to play nicely, Anakin," Obi-Wan said, in a lighter, almost bored tone… before he flung the droids around them back a good fifteen meters, making an empty circle with just them and the Muun.

"It doesn't seem so, does it?" Anakin replied, moving to the Muun's far side and spinning his lightsaber over his hand. "That's a pity. I mean, do you see many options here for him?" 

"I truly only see two, Anakin. He can either surrender, and accept the word of two Jedi to keep him safe… or he can reap the effect of having helped push said Jedi toward desperate measures." Obi-Wan circled the other way, lightsaber held up high, free hand outstretched. "Because if I am attacked, I know it will end with a death. Not mine."

Speaking harder, presenting such options, was a calculated push on psychology, but that didn't mean Obi-Wan wouldn't follow through if the Muun gave them reason to.

"Those were about all I was seeing, yeah," Anakin agreed, watching the Muun. Muun's weren't known for their bravery, they were cunning and motivated by profits. So what would this one do, with -- he swung his lightsaber backwards, responding to the droid behind him with a single bisecting slash. "Look, we don't _want_ to kill you. We can protect you. Just surrender and save your life." 

"I surrender, then," the Muun said, calculating the likelihood of survival or freedom from this point.

"Quite sensible of you. Now, if you'd tell your forces to stand down… we'd hate it if you got caught in their friendly fire," Obi-Wan pointed out.

"Stand down!" the commander called, an order relayed rapidly.

"Very sensible," Anakin said, torn between startlement and satisfaction. He wasn't used to Separatist leaders having even half a brain. But then, there weren't many Muun on the front lines either. "This way, then, commander," he said, making a gesture back towards camp. 

"Of course." The Muun obeyed, even as Obi-Wan felt a distinct unease. They would take their prisoner directly back to the Temple, he decided, just as soon as Kit arrived. And they would do it without fanfare.

Anakin looked towards his Master, feeling something... and he realized what it was. Every time they'd taken a Separatist prisoner, "something" had happened to free or silence them. Not this time. No-one was going to know until they arrived on Coruscant. He nodded his agreement with his Master, not needing to speak. 

+++

By the time the sun came up, the battlefield was cleaned back up, the Separatist transports had been crammed full of the destroyed and deactivated droids for shipment back to one of the Republic core worlds for reclamation, Ahsoka had made certain that Solo and her Masters all ate something, and was at her Master's side. 

"What is it, Snips?" 

"Solo. He said he didn't know anything about this time. And I don't want to shake up the men with the questions he might have, and my tent's -- well, it's still kind of buzzing." 

"As much Force as we threw around in it, I'd be surprised if it wasn't," Anakin agreed, and wrapped his arm around her for a moment. "So what's your solution?" 

"Up on that bluff? You'll know where we are, but we'll be out of easy earshot, yeah?" 

Anakin glanced at where she'd indicated, and had to nod. It was too small a high point to have pitched camp, but for the two of them it would be pretty spacious. "Okay, Snips. Go have fun with your climbing." 

"Got to teach the kid how to move, Master!" she shot back, before going to acquire said kid.

Anakin Solo was, currently, occupying himself with dissecting the communication gear of an TX droid that had been on the field, studying it versus the processor capabilities. He looked up, though, as soon Ahsoka came close. 

"Hi! Did you know these these things are wired to receive real-time regular updates from every single squad leader tied to it?" he asked.

Ahsoka crouched down to stare at it, blinking a couple of times. "We figured there had to be something like that, given how fast they adapt, but no, I hadn't actually seen proof. Skyguy might have before I got sent to him, though. It'd be like him." 

"Cool." He shrugged. "I was bored, and needed something to do. So I snagged one. Quad said it was okay as long as I logged it out and put it back in the reclamation bin when I was done."

"Yeah, of course it is," Ahsoka agreed, shifting a little closer to it. "The trouble with these things is that their encryption is continually changing. Even capturing a bunch of them doesn't help, because by the time we can get them hacked, the rest have all swapped encryption about four times. Super frustrating." 

"Hmm. No pattern to the encryption change, I take it." He wracked his brain for a solution to that, thinking on lessons from Winter, and the less savory ones from Ghent, to see if he could figure out how to counter that.

"Nope. Drives Fleet intel straight up a tree," Ahsoka replied, shaking her head, "and Skyguy's taken a few cracks at it without success. I noticed you had a little trouble jumping up to me during the fight, want to go practice? Maybe see if I can answer some of the questions you've gotta have, being in a totally new place?" 

"Sure. I've never seen anyone move like you… or them, when I got a glimpse of them. It's the Force, right? But how do you make it ignore gravity?" He gathered up all of the pieces he had been working with into a pack, having begged it off some trooper, so that he wouldn't be without something to work on.

"It's not 'ignoring' gravity, exactly?" Ahsoka replied, "it's just using the Force to take you beyond what an ordinary person can do. Though sometimes I really do think Master Yoda _can_ ignore gravity." 

She'd said that with a grin, but it was true. "C'mon, let's go climb that bluff." As she walked towards it, she called up her youngling lessons on the tricks of movement, telling them to him. It felt strange to be the one teaching, but... kind of good, too. 

He followed her lessons carefully, applying them to what he also knew. It didn't take long, though, for him to be mostly keeping up with her. He was, much like herself, a sponge when it came to learning.

She hung from one of the outcroppings, turning to grin cheerfully at him. "You're doing great," she praised, before bouncing up again. And he learned so quick, too. She bounced over the rim of the bluff and stretched out contentedly on the hard, warm rock, popping some of her joints. 

Anakin sprawled on his stomach after shoving the pack off, once he was up there. He sighed as the warmth penetrated his tunics and soaked in.

"You don't get many moments like this, do you?" he asked when he rolled to his side, propping up on an elbow.

Ahsoka turned her head to look at him, still sprawled out, before she sighed. "No, not really. If we weren't worried about further problems here, we'd probably be mobilizing back up to the _Resolute_ and _Negotiator_ so the _Vod'e_ could take advantage of the time in hyperspace to rest. 

"And I could _try_ convincing Skyguy to get some sleep of his own. Yeah, right." She snorted, shaking her head. 

"I'm pretty certain Aunt Mara only said 'yes' so she could knock Uncle Luke out occasionally. Because he's ALWAYS around and awake and paying attention." Anakin rolled his eyes. "I can't really understand an actual war, not like this. I'm used to hit and run tactics the Remnant has been using ever since they lost their tactical genius. Even that's mostly stopped since Admiral Pelleaon finally signed a treaty."

"Admiral _Pelleaon_?" Ahsoka repeated, a wave of unhappiness sweeping through her. "Not -- not Captain Gilad?" 

Sure, he'd been stuffy and grumpy and made her put a stupid amount of clothes on, but he'd been a pretty good guy. He'd been devoted to getting that agent out... 

Anakin raised an eyebrow at her. "Yeah? I mean, I knew he was older than dirt, but if you know him, he's really older than dirt," he said, stressing the last. "He came out on top, after all the Moffs and Grand Admirals finished themselves off. Mom thinks the treaty will last, and she's actually reported the last raids to the Remnant… and had them take care of the problem. So, maybe we can all start rebuilding?"

"I hope so," Ahsoka said, trying to remind herself that that was far in the future, and never going to happen, now. "It's just... he might be a grump, but he's a pretty good guy. So I don't want to think about him involved with -- well, with the Sith. Not happening, though. 

"Does anybody really understand war?" she asked, wry. "I understand tactics -- well, mostly -- and sometimes strategy. And that we have to protect the Republic and neutral civilians from the droid armies." 

"But why are the droid armies? Why does an army of made-men exist? What drives someone like the Emperor to be a weapon of destruction to everything? Why does anyone want to be more powerful than someone else? Seems like a big, fat head ache to me." Anakin half-shrugged, then rolled onto his back to stare at the sky. "Is my grandfather going to be okay?"

"I'm with you on the big fat headache," Ahsoka agreed, meaning it wholeheartedly. "And... I don't know. I hope so. I know he's hurting a lot -- he can't hide that, no matter how much he tries to wall off the bond -- but Master Kenobi's with him. He won't let anything else happen to him." 

That was one thing she was sure of. Her grandmaster would take care of his padawan, no matter what. 

"About the 'why's, though, some of those I can answer. There's been trouble in the Republic for forever, of course. Whenever you get that many sentients together, someone's always going to think they're being treated unfairly, yeah?" 

"Yeah. I've seen that with Mom trying to negotiate things between sects in the New Republic." Anakin wrinkled his nose. "She's having to do a lot of that, the more peace settles in, actually."

Ahsoka nodded. "Not surprised. But things really started getting messy about... twelve years ago, I guess. I'd just come to the Temple from Shili, and I don't remember any of it, but it's part of classes. Something happened on Naboo that made the Trade Federation unhappy, and the Naboo people -- well, the human half, anyway -- forced their king to abdicate and your grandmother was elected Queen. A few months after her election, the Trade Federation decided to blockade the planet. 

"Then -- which's still really weird -- they went from holding a legal space blockade to landing armies of B1s on the planet surface, which was **so** far from legal that it's in Wild Space. Unfortunately for them, the old Chancellor had sent Jedi to negotiate a settlement between them and the Queen, so they were there during the invasion and helped the Queen escape." 

"Negotiations didn't go well?" Anakin asked, listening even as he got the parts back out to work on them. His hands needed to be busy.

"Mmm, more like they never started because the Trade Federation tried to kill the Jedi as soon as they arrived. That might've had something to do with the whole 'help the Queen' thing, too," Ahsoka shrugged a little. "So they managed to run the blockade and escape, somehow had to land on Tatooine where they found Skyguy, then they got to Coruscant. The old Chancellor couldn't help -- I don't remember why -- so there wound up being an election for a new one, one that could do something about the cris -- " 

Her voice stuttered to a stop as she realized who that was, and if he'd been a Sith all along, then -- 

"He _wanted_ his own people to die! He was responsible for them and he sent the Trade Federation to kill them!" 

Anakin looked at her in confusion. "What? Are you saying the Emperor is from Naboo?"

Ahsoka nodded. "He was their Senator then, he's from one of their old Noble Families, he's -- ooh, the Senator is going to lose her **mind**." 

"Good." Anakin would love to have more politicians fired up at the evil filth. "Means he'll go down hard."

Ahsoka mimed lifting a glass, tipping it towards him. "Here's to **that**! And no doubt of that she'll help. Where was I?" 

"Naboo being when it started," he said helpfully. "And that bantha turd being from there."

"Right," Ahsoka nodded. "No-one says very much about what happened with the election, but I know the Queen decided that she was going back to Naboo and taking back her planet. She and her people managed to make contact with the Gungans, those're the other native sentient species on Naboo, and they worked out a plan to take the Viceroy of the Trade Federation the way they'd tried to take her. The first generation B1s, they only functioned as long as they had a signal from a big orbital control ship. 

"Skyguy -- kid that he was then, weird as that is to think of -- somehow wound up up in the space fight, was the one that took the control ship down. Well. Whereby 'down'' I mean 'destroyed' -- "

"Whoa! That's pretty impressive!"

"That's Skyguy," Ahsoka agreed, smiling bright with pride. "Shut all the droids down before too many of the Gungans died, and in time for the Queen to get the Viceroy. Slimy little _maggot_ , I can't believe he got away from us **again** \-- but that's jumping way ahead, sorry." 

"So, the droid armies were stopped by my grandfather… but it wasn't really the war he headed off? Was it a feint, something to test the ground for later?" Anakin asked perceptively. "Or… no, it was a maneuver to begin getting power. Okay, how did it come to this?" and he waved at the amp and battlefield.

"You're really sharp," Ahsoka said, smiling at him. "Yeah, that was the first move. Things between the Trade Federation and Naboo went through, I don't know, five trials? Nothing really happened, except it made a lot of disaffected systems start getting even angrier and more upset. Which is where Count Dooku came in. 

"He used to be a Jedi Master. He'd never been on the Council, but he was very respected. When he started talking about withdrawal from the Republic -- even if it meant working with the kriffing scum that helped kill his _own Padawan_ ; ... well, a lot of people listened." 

Anakin's eyes went wide. "Jedi Masters fall, but to seek that kind of power? Was he possessed? And what's a padawan?"

"Not possessed as far as we know, no. He just decided to throw away a lifetime of service to the Republic in favor of what the Sith could offer him. He's a Sith Lord himself, now, responsible for the deaths of over a hundred Knights or Masters, and Force alone knows how many _vod'e_ and civilians. I don't know what he thinks he's getting out of it, but I mean to help see that he doesn't get it. 

"What do you mean, what's a Padawan?" Ahsoka blinked at him, cocking her head a little. 

"My uncle has never used that word. Nor Master Tionne. But they haven't learned everything there is to know." Anakin shrugged. "Rebuilding the Order and all that."

"...right," Ahsoka said, shaking her head and listening to the comforting clatter of her beads. "I just... I can't imagine how we could all have disappeared, or lost so much. Anyway. A Padawan is a senior student, learning with a single Master -- well, unless your Master admits they're not good at something and they want you to learn from a Master who is," she amended. "Like me to Skyguy. Or him to Master Kenobi, when he was still a Padawan. 

"Lessons in the Temple are great for younglings and Initiates, but you get to a point where you're pretty well done with standard lessons, and then either a Master comes and picks you, or the Council decides who you should go to. That's what happened with me and Skyguy. I... might've been driving the youngling-Masters a little up the walls." 

Anakin grinned. "I can't think of any single master/apprentice knight teams, to be honest, but more students than teachers maybe? We're learning as fast as we can, and uncle Luke has had some problems along the way."

Ahsoka nodded. "That makes sense, I guess. Hard for me to imagine, but it makes sense. A padawan stays with their Master for... a while, there's not really a standard time? I think the fastest Knighting I ever heard of was three years? Ten seems like it's sort of the average, just from what I've seen." She shrugged a shoulder, thinking for a few moments about if there was anything else about what being a Padawan meant that she really needed to tell him. 

She couldn't think of much, except... "It's sort of a way of tracing lineage, for a lot of Jedi. I mean, almost none of us remember our parents, and unless you're like Master Mundi -- or Corellian, they have their own rules -- you don't have acknowledged children, so the closest most Jedi have is their Master and maybe their grand-Master, and then their padawans. Sometimes people that've been padawans to the same Master become close, too. 

"It's one of the reasons Dooku makes me so angry. He betrayed his Master, and he betrayed his Padawan by working with the people that got Master Jinn killed, and he tried to have his grand-Padawan and Skyguy executed the day that the war started." 

Anakin shook his head. "Sick in the head. That's what the Dark does to people. There has to be Dark, has to be a Balance, but giving over to it… " He shuddered violently. "Not good. And I really hope I'm strong enough… well, I've hoped I'd be strong enough not to Fall."

Ahsoka reached out and squeezed his fingers gently. "There's definitely something sick in his head... and I think you'll be just fine. From the way you tried to help... you're not selfish the way the Sith I've had the misfortune of running into are. 

"The people -- worlds -- following Dooku's lead officially call themselves the Confederacy of Independent Systems, but mostly they're called Separatists or just Seppies. At least on our side of the battlefields. They were doing a lot of big talk, but there hadn't been any violence.... until they hired a bounty hunter to kill Senator Amidala." 

"And that set it all off? An assassination attempt?" he asked, curious how one Senator could trigger such events.

"Sort of?" Ahsoka shrugged slightly. "She'd spent the previous year becoming the face of the 'we will not fight to keep you' argument in the Senate, arguing against the Military Creation Act that would let the Chancellor raise an army... so people got pretty riled at the attempt to shut her up. And then when Master Kenobi and Skyguy started investigating, Master Kenobi tracked the bounty hunter to Kamino, found out about the _vod'e_ being made for the Republic, chased the bounty hunter again, and wound up taken prisoner on Geonosis and sentenced to be executed. 

"He'd gotten word out, though, and Master Windu nearly emptied the Temple of Knights and Masters to go rescue him. ...a lot of Jedi died that day, because Dooku turned loose a whole droid army out of the foundries there. After that, the Seps went on the offensive, attacking every Rimward Republic world they could reach. Destroying cities, killing people by the hundred thousand while claiming they're just protecting themselves..." 

Anakin's eyes welled up, thinking about so much death on such scale. He was a survivor, knew his recent history, but that… was a lot of destruction.

"That's terrible."

"Yeah," Ashoka agreed quietly. "It is. We'd have no chance of standing against them if it wasn't for the _vod'e_..." 

"Who were created without a choice and made to believe in the ideals of the people they were created to protect," Anakin summed up. "Which is a nasty piece of work, and probably another Sith manipulation in its own."

Ahsoka nodded at the first part -- she couldn't stand the way the _vod'e_ had come to be, the way they were so willing to die for the Republic -- but then her lips skinned back from her teeth at the last, her eyes narrowing at him at the insult to her clan, her men. Her mouth opened to deny it, to defend them... and the Force rippled strangely, warningly. 

Anakin's eyes narrowed, as he felt it too. "Something about your friends is that filth's doing. That's not good." He fiddled with the pieces of droid in his lap a little more, considering. "You, the Jedi as a whole. trust them deeply."

Ahsoka whistled for a moment, her hands flexing, hot anger bubbling up in her. No, no, **no**. She was not going to lose her men to the same filth that had tried to take her Master. It was not. going. to. happen. "They've proven they're trustworthy a hundred times if they've done it once. They give everything they've got, over and over again. They'll hold a line against Ventress or Grievous or Dooku himself, despite that none of them can use the Force at all, they'll hold. ...and they think their job is to protect _us_ , ridiculous as that is. We're the Jedi, we're their commanders and generals, we protect them." 

The boy nodded. "But if there's training under the loyalty programming, that someone can trigger? Like a double agent thing? Then they'd be perfectly positioned to be the reason my Uncle was the last of the Jedi."

Ahsoka hissed at that, _loathing_ the idea... but it made sense. It made **too much** sense. "Then we have to find it, figure out how to deactivate it or give them some kind of defense. It -- it'd destroy them, to be used against us like that... I've got to talk to Master Ti. She's on Kamino, healing and helping raise the newest batches and cadets, giving them more encouragement to be **people** than the Kaminoans do." 

He watched her, listened to her, and his gut instinct told him he was right. Her loyalty to these troopers was too clear, too strong, for there not to be an edge cutting at it from the Sith machinations. "I hope we can find it in time, Lady Tano."

Ahsoka shook her head. "We _are_ going to find it in time. They didn't have any choice about being born, or about what they were taught, but they're unique, every one of them, and I will not let that happen. You can just call me Ahsoka, you know. You're _aliit_ \-- whoops, sorry. You're clan." 

She had to talk to Master Ti, and she had to do it fast. But Skyguy would lose the faint grip on composure he had if she told him why, or he heard her... so she'd have to wait until Master Fisto got here and they left. 

"Clan? I guess that makes sense. If you're grandfather's apprentice, and all," he said with a smile. "You realize, the more things I change, the less likely I'm ever even going to be born, right? Because my mom and dad met due to the Empire. They never would have had reason to meet if Mom had been raised by her birth parents in a Republic that worked."

He was less bothered by the idea of his own non-existence than that of his siblings. Mostly, he knew, because Jaina and Jacen were close to the center of many of his own memories.

Ahsoka shrugged slightly. "So I'll have to be an interfering auntie and bring your dad 'home' with me sometime once your mom has started noticing boys, I guess. Since you told me where I need to go to find him." 

Anakin had to laugh at that idea. "Good luck. Dad's a hard-headed, smug, cocky kind of guy that runs his mouth all the time. And Mom's opinionated, stubborn, and deadset on doing things her way, all the time."

"...so they're pretty much _exactly_ like your grandparents, without having ever known either one of them," Ahsoka summed up. "Weird, but definitely funny." 

The boy snickered. "It really is kind of funny, isn't it?" He kept tinkering, trying to figure out the logical steps in encryption that these droids were using by studying the base configuration of the hardware.

+++

Obi-Wan was just as glad to be on his way to the Temple as Anakin was dreading it. They secured their prisoner, made certain there was no feasible way for him to escape, and then Obi-Wan sat back and waited for Anakin to get them into hyperspace. Once they were cruising comfortably there, then he spoke.

"I want to be honest with you, Anakin, before we get back to Coruscant," he said. "About the complications that may arise as we set in motion events to end this. Secrets may come out into the open… and I want you aware of the fact I am going to support you."

Anakin blinked, startled, his head turning towards his Master. Obi-Wan hadn't seemed at all surprised at Solo's existence... but did that mean he... 

"I have been supporting you, quietly, Anakin. Or do you really think I would put up with hours of 'not knowing where you are' in all honesty, when I could have tried harder?" Obi-Wan shook his head. "After failing you so badly, my friend, I wished you to know what happiness she could bring you."

Anakin paused and considered that, turning it over... and he realized it was very true. His Master could have found him anywhere, especially just a few sectors of a planet away, but he never had. The idea that he had been supporting them, letting him have what time with his wife he could... He moved, turning his body to reach for his hands, latching on, as some of the raw places in his mind twinged, patterns of thought that weren't there anymore trying to assert themselves. 

Obi-Wan took both those hands, holding on for all he was worth. That it had taken this for all the faults and crevasses to break under them and expose the fact they both truly did care for one another was one more sin in the long list of tragedies shaping Obi-Wan's very existence. 

"So, I am beside you, no matter what, on defending your relationship," he said, rather than push too hard at the subject.

Anakin refused to let go, nodding in slow, startled relief. "Thank you, Master. I -- kriff, I don't know what to even say, other than that. I -- " 

"I don't need gratitude, Anakin." Obi-Wan looked at him with deep sadness lurking in the back of his eyes. "I wish you to enjoy the gift you have in being in love with someone who returns it."

Anakin held on, suddenly and sharply concerned for his Master, his eyes studying Obi-Wan's face. There was something there, something... Some of his first memories of being with them rose up, of Master Qui-Gon and the way he'd looked after Obi-Wan as the young man stalked away, and his fingers tightened a little more. And then there was the Duchess, too, and all of the complexities between them. "She's... so wonderful, Master." 

"I think she's a very admirable person, Anakin," Obi-Wan agreed. "Now, is there anything else I can do to ease your mind?"

"My mind feels like it's been put through a meat grinder," Anakin replied, one corner of his mouth quirking up just a little as he said it. "Or used for target practice by the entire legion. And... knowing how badly I let him twist me has me... Well, knocked down several pegs? Not a comfortable feeling." 

Obi-Wan shook his head. "Anakin, you were a child with no defenses when this began. Do not take it as a failing that he was able to. Take heart in the fact that once you knew, you overcame it." He brushed his thumb over Anakin's knuckles before drawing back some. "You are brilliant and gifted and everything I ever warned you about being arrogant over… and I am sorry that I thought it better to inflict humility than to encourage you."

Anakin blinked at him, his head slowly tilting as those last words made him pause and consider -- so much -- of the last twelve years from a wildly different angle. He'd been used to criticism and sharpness, to people trying to put him more firmly in his place... he'd hated and resented it, and had been surprised at finding it in the Jedi (at first) but he'd been used to it. And more used to burying his reactions to it. 

"I kept seeing it as unrepentant arrogance, and had many reasons to fear that," Obi-Wan continued. "I think now, it was a facet of the conditioning, to only let me see traits that were most undesired in a Jedi, to keep you and I at odds."

"I wouldn't bet against it," Anakin agreed, thinking of how many times he'd complained of his Master in one breath and idolized him the next. "I wouldn't bet against it at all, actually. And... I -- " He could only half believe what he wanted to say, even less believed that it would matter if he said it even while he knew it would, "I forgive you, brother." 

Obi-Wan's breath caught in his throat to hear those words, and then his eyes closed. He had to, because his emotions were raw and too close to the surface. "Thank you, Anakin."

Anakin watched the effect his words had and moved. He hadn't invaded Obi-Wan's lap since he was all of twelve, but hell with it, _he_ needed the hug even if Obi-Wan would protest that _he_ didn't. It wasn't hard to pull the chair around or to figure out how to wedge himself into it and against his brother's body. 

"Anakin!" Obi-Wan attempted a protest, but his arms were latching on, his body shifting, making it possible to share the chair and hold onto one another. "Oh, you impossible man," Obi-Wan said, a dry chuckle in the words, even as he rested his head against Anakin's. 

Anakin hummed smugly as Obi-Wan latched on to him, cheerfully ignoring the obviously feigned -- or at least halfhearted -- protest. "Yep," he agreed with the last words, settling in more comfortably. Tension that had coiled all through him relaxed, his body settling down again. 

How much did Obi-Wan still love this padawan of his? It ached in his chest to feel that love had nearly been murdered by the evil of a man that had been so trusted, but he had hope. Hope that Anakin was safe now, and that they could move forward, possibly end this conflict.

"It's all right, now," Anakin murmured, not entirely certain which of them he was reassuring, but Obi-Wan had latched on to him and he was not about to let go any time soon. He'd be decorous once they were out of hyperspace again. 

+++

Anakin Solo was delightedly distracted as Kit Fisto taught him. Ahsoka had been glad to introduce them, and then face-palmed slightly as Solo's need to learn slid right into Master Fisto's joy in being a teacher. She should have seen that coming. 

Master Fisto, for all that he was one of the Order's preeminent warriors, would be one of the happiest to have the war end and get back to normal.

It meant, though, that Ahsoka had time to both touch base with Commander Cody and Captain Rex, as well as patch the call in to Shaak Ti. For that, she was going to have to switch to Togruti, because she had to tell her mentor… without being understood by anyone else.

Shaak Ti answered the comm quickly, surprised to see Ahsoka looking at her. "Hello, little huntress. Are you well?" 

"I am, Master Ti, for the most part. Missing my people, perhaps," she said, lekku telling a different story. The words were an excuse; her lekku were screaming that the call was highly important. [I am sorry for using our language poorly; I don't get to very often,] she began. [But there is danger to the Vod'e, by the Sith, and I need you to find it, Senior-Huntress.]

Shaak Ti blinked in surprise, then expanded the holo so that she could read the lekku more clearly, listening to her whistles. Danger to the men, from the Sith. No, not from, by... but how? [What danger, huntress?] 

[Something that can turn them on us,] Ahsoka said, conveying sadness in her words, but belief it was possible. [Maybe in the training, hidden from us, or in the helmets, to convey an order at a deep level… I don't know what exactly. I just know it is likely how … pellets, how do I say it… one who is a vision of what may be has warned us of a time we are dead. All the Order. And logic brings us to hidden danger in the men.]

Shaak Ti hissed, her lekku stiffening in anger at the thought. 'One who is a vision' was complicated phrasing, and phrasing she was not at all sure she understood or liked -- but a warning of the death of the Order simply could not be ignored. [I will hunt through the training,] she agreed. 

[Check the technology too,] Ahsoka said. [it would have to reach them all at once for it to work, if what I fear is true.] She then bowed her head slightly to the elder Jedi. "Thank you, Master Ti, for indulging me." The words in Basic almost matched the gratitude and relief in the lekku.

"You are welcome, little huntress," Shaak Ti answered, smiling at her. "I do try to make time for you. Be careful." 

"Why Master, you know me! I am always careful," Ahsoka said impudently. "And Master Fisto is wiser to my tricks than Master Skywalker, so I have to behave." She then grinned. "May the Force be with you, Master."

"And with you," Shaak Ti replied, smiling at her before she closed out the comm. Now... to see where to begin. 

+++

Transferring the prisoner to Jedi care had happened in the thick of Coruscant's night. Obi-Wan had forestalled questions outside the transfer to morning, protecting Anakin. Now, out of earshot of the Consulars and Sentinels that had met them, he looked at his friend.

"Do try to be back before Council," he said, gracing Anakin's escape to his beloved.

Anakin flashed him a smile and then cocked his head slightly, "What time, again? I'll make it." 

"Second business hour," Obi-Wan said, smiling back. He then turned to leave Anakin to his night, heading not for quarters but for the Room of a Thousand Fountains. Meditating in there was more likely to help him than sleeping in a cluttered but mostly unused apartment full of too many memories.

Anakin nodded and left as quickly as Artoo could keep up with him -- and Artoo quickly lifted to boosters to make that a speedier process. They both knew the quickest way from here to the speeders, and he wanted, needed, to see Padmé, to hold his wife. They'd decided against bringing Solo to Coruscant, but Artoo and his wrist unit alike had all of the footage the boy hadn't minded.being taken, to share with her. To have _something_ against the horror he was going to have to share with her. 

Artoo beeped at him to hurry, teasing a little, as he pushed himself to get to one of the speeders. He knew things were bad and his pilot was very upset now, but things would be better once they got home. His Senator would see to that.

"Yeah, yeah, you just want to see Threepio," Anakin retorted -- even as he did move a little faster yet. Artoo lifted into the speeder as he hopped over the side and into the pilot's seat, and they were off. Even in the deep of night, Coruscant was busy... but at least it was _less_ busy. 

Artoo agreed; he did want to see Threepio and recharge in his favorite spot and be certain the Senator was well. But mostly, he wanted his pilot to be okay.

They managed to get landed soon enough, with Artoo sending the recognition codes to clear the enhanced security net on the pad, and then he maneuvered out of the speeder, beeping at his pilot to be quiet; his scanners suggested the Senator was sleeping.

"Yeah, well, _you_ be quiet then," Anakin replied in a whisper, leaving the speeder tethered at the pad as he followed Artoo out of it. If he could get into bed without waking her, he wouldn't disturb her -- getting to be near her while she slept was one of the things he treasured, and so rarely experienced. He lost the layers of cloak and belts, tabard and shirts outside the door, keeping them together with the Force, lightsaber at the top of the pile. He eased the door open, put the bundle down, brought his lightsaber along with him to the bedside table, and moved quietly towards the bed. 

Padmé shifted, what looked to be an innocent move in her sleep, hand sliding under her pillow… and Anakin knew she had awakened to the entry into her room, that her hand was finding the small blaster.

"Hello, Angel," he told her softly, knowing the grin on his lips carried over in his voice. _Force_ , but he loved this woman! "I was hoping not to wake you -- should have known better." 

"Yes you should have," she said, but she let go of the blaster and turned instead to see him, her hair faintly out of place from sleep, and no makeup on her, as well as the trusting, loving expression in her eyes. "It's very good to see you, Ani, but I'm very surprised? I thought you said long campaign this time."

He shrugged one shoulder, moving to settle down onto the bed, losing his train of thought for a moment at the look in her eyes, the faint curve of her smile. How was he this lucky, this blessed? "We got... interrupted. And Obi-Wan and I... might have managed to capture the Muun leading the assault on the planet?" 

"A Muun? They've not been spotted actively at the front. This could be a breakthrough in figuring out the power structure, possibly to crack it," Padmé said, analyzing the capture news. "And you didn't let it get out, because this is the first I've heard of it. My people bring me all the rumors, after all. 

She stopped talking, though, to tuck in along his side, meeting his lips in a kiss that showed she had missed him terribly.

He nodded his agreement in the moment before he kissed her back, just as intent. He'd missed her, he needed her so much. Her touch, being in her presence... they helped soothe him on an entirely different level than the extended contact with Obi-Wan had. He wrapped his left arm down around her waist, holding her close. 

She sighed into the kiss, pressing close, one hand running up his stomach and chest to come to rest over his heart. He was so much a part of her passion and peace both, someone she could just be Padmé Naberrie with. That she loved him endlessly just added to the perfection of his presence in her life.

"Hmm, should I snuggle with you and actually let us both get sleep," she began after the kiss, "or take advantage of my husband being in our bed?"

Anakin laughed, low in his throat, and moved a little to push into her hand on his chest. He was perfectly content with either idea -- Force knew, the moment his wife was in his arms, his body answered her. His head dipped back back down to kiss her again, long and slow. He let go of her lips only gradually, his hand stroking along her back. " _I'm_ awake. Are you, love?"

"How could I be anything else, Ani? You're with me, and that's too rare for me to waste the time." She shifted to straddle his hips, so she could face him, her mouth finding his again as she brought both hands to rest on his shoulders to hold on to him.

Anakin hummed low in his throat, looking up at the most beautiful woman in the galaxy as she pinned him down, loving the feel of it. "I'm glad," he murmured, abandoning himself to her. 

+++ 

Later, much later, he curled around her, breathing her scent as their breathing slowed, his lips against her shoulder. "I love you," he told her softly. 

"I love you, Ani," she said, drowsily, so content to be in his arms, to be held, to be… well, very satisfied. Sometimes she felt guilty for that last. Anakin showed no interest in learning other lovers, and she had more or less taught him how to please her exactly the way she liked.

"I know," he answered, though he still marvelled at the fact. He kissed her skin again, and decided that the drowsy feeling from her meant that they should sleep. He could wake her as the sun came up, and have plenty of time both to tell her and get back to the Temple in time. 

She purred a little and then she was sliding into sleep, content and knowing she was safe.

+++

Padmé actually woke a little before Anakin; she was in her normal environment and on her usual schedule, while he had been very disrupted in his and was enjoying the peace of holding her. She had rolled so she was facing him now, her head nestled on his shoulder. She wondered if he would shower with her, so they could enjoy a little more time together, and started tracing the faint scars he had picked up in his life.

Her touch, unlike almost all others, he could sleep through, but that she was aware pulled him towards consciousness, and he opened his eyes before much time had passed at all. "Mmm... morning?" 

"Morning, Ani." She pressed up and placed a light kiss along his jaw. "I hope you have time to share my shower." She never knew how quickly he would need to leave her.

"Which hour is it?" he asked, turning his head to kiss her cheek in return. 

"Not quite first hour," she said softly, hoping that meant he had time.

"I have to appear at the Council by second business hour... so yes," he agreed, "I can join you in that shower. After that... we should still have some time to talk before I have to go." 

"Alright." She kissed him one more time before rising from the bed, glad she hadn't bothered with her gown again after their loving. She walked to the 'fresher, pausing only once to give him the most come-hither look she could manage over her shoulder.

He laughed as she looked back at him -- as though she needed to cast those looks to have him following her? Her simply existing was more than enough. He rolled up out of the bed, matching her, only pausing to tug his lightsaber to his hand. Her shower was one of the most luxurious things he'd ever seen, though she said it wasn't. 

She didn't say anything about the lightsaber, but then, she had a blaster hidden in every room of every residence she stayed in. There was a healthy respect for preventing assassination in her blood, part of her culture where democracy rode in the same cart with ancient feudal concepts.

"How is everyone else?" she asked, leaving it to him to decide who he felt like updating her on. She took the time to gather her hair and secure it up, not wanting to worry with washing it just yet when it took so long to get dry. It could wait one more day.

"Ahsoka, Rex, and Cody are fine, holding the planet we just reclaimed with Master Fisto for backup. Obi-Wan isn't hurt, but 'fine' would be overstating it. Artoo is delighted to be back here with Threepio, so he's just fine," Anakin summed up the people he cared about quickly. "And your ladies?" 

"Moté has come to assist me, because Eirtaé is taking personal leave. Everyone on Naboo is well, though Sabé is muttering about being bored again," Padmé said with a small smile. "Apparently there's been no recent assassination plots for her to ferret out."

Anakin snorted in amusement at that thought. "Always busy, isn't she?" he asked as the water came on at her touch. 

How did he tell her that the man they had both trusted so completely had betrayed them -- and everyone else -- in the most complete, profound ways? Well, not until they were out of the shower, anyway. 

"She enjoys running Naboo's intelligence network, I think. I miss her… but I see her when I am there." All of her handmaidens were so special to her, but Sabé went deeper than that. She let the water cascade over her skin, completely at peace in this moment.

"I know," he agreed, pressing a kiss to her shoulder in the water. 

She pressed into that kiss, and decided to take as much advantage of time and the hot water as she could.

+++

"You talk, I cook," Padmé said, as they had used more time than wise in the shower, but she wasn't letting him leave hungry. She was clad solely in her robe, as she could be fashionably late if needed. Anakin, actually mindful of a time to be somewhere, was something she would encourage.

Anakin answered, "Yes, ma'am," as he went to pull on his clothes. Or at least part of them, replacing some pieces with the extras he left with his wife. He still didn't want to tell her, but he had to. He came back and perched himself on the counter, watching her moving through the kitchen, adoring her. She was beautiful in her formal wear, but like this, the way so few people would ever see, she was... incredible. 

"We had -- well, Ahsoka found, really -- a... unique, we'll say, arrival on the battlefield, between waves." 

She arched an eyebrow in his direction, then pushed fresh fruit at him to begin eating, while she worked on protein and starches to actually get at least one filling meal into him.

"Ahsoka found them? You mean she wasn't directly at your side, trying to prove that a sixteen year old is invulnerable?" she teased softly, knowing the padawan's fearless nature.

"No, she was holding the other end of the canyon I was knocking them back into with Coric and the other half of the legion," Anakin answered with a quickly amused smile between bites of the fruit. "Obi-Wan got into some trouble just as we finished up, so I didn't meet the boy at first. Probably a good thing, given -- well, given." 

"Given what, Ani?" She chopped up some peppers to add to the skillet. "And I am not going to judge you for the idea that a sixteen year old apprentice is actually able to command a half-legion in combat, because I have seen her, but… your Order is more reckless than I approve of with their young people." Nevermind that she had been fourteen fighting a war, or was only now twenty-six. She, and Anakin, had been in extraordinary situations; the Jedi did it regularly to their children.

"Given that I felt her going into a full-out panic attack about an hour later, and the only answer she'd give me across the bond was that she was 'talking to a future that can't happen'. If I'd introduced myself to the kid before they got to talk.... it wouldn't have gone well." That was the understatement of the last year or so, he snorted at himself. 

"A future that can't happen sounds vaguely ominous. But you said arrival, not vision… I'm confused, Ani." She added a few more vegetables to the skillet to balance out the peppers and meat, while glancing at him.

"So are the rest of us," Anakin agreed. "But the boy... oh, hell, this isn't going to get any easier -- he's our grandson. The Force literally picked him up from Yavin IV and dropped him on Yeobos VI." 

The steady preparation of food paused, as Padmé looked at him with disbelief in her eyes. She then drew in a deep breath and went back to cooking. "Time travel. And our own lineage involved. Well, someone related to you would get caught up in the unusual, probably," she said with a hint of teasing. It was easier than giving serious weight to the idea of their legacy. Except… "A future that cannot happen. Where do we mess it up, Ani? Or are there more events that will wreck our efforts to save the Republic and Vod'e?"

He shuddered once, left the counter, and wrapped around her as close as he could, burying his face against her hair. "Oh, my wife, I love you. I -- we trusted, we _all_ trusted, **completely** the wrong person, and it..." 

Padmé put one arm over his that was around her, but continued to cook, remembering the lessons of remaining practical in the face of bad news. "Anakin, betrayal never comes from strangers," she reminded. "I love you, husband, but right now, I need you to sit back down and just tell me, so I can make my plans on how to completely rip this individual apart. Politically, of course, unless they push the issue to blasters."

Anakin took a few breaths, clinging to her, before he made himself let go, made himself step back from her and let her work. "You're going to have to hold your political face harder than you ever have in your life, my wife. Because the tangle of compulsions, influences, and clouding laid by Dooku's Master that our grandson ripped out of my mind..." he glanced over her shoulder to be certain she had no chance of hurting herself at the moment, "...came from the Chancellor." 

The spatula she was stirring with skittered on the surface of the skillet from the pressure that was suddenly in her hand. She felt like a wall of fury in front of him, before she took a cleansing breath, then another. 

"Anakin, I haven't wanted to say anything to you, not until I knew, but I have been worried lately that he was growing accustomed to his power," she said. "But the idea that he is behind all of this, just as Dooku told us a Sith was, is obscene. And to know he personally has been manipulating you? On top of all the pieces of my life, of my planet, he's shoved around for that power? To count all the deaths at his hands? I will take the utmost pleasure in digging down and finding his roots to rip him apart and shred him on the winds of change."

She kept her voice level, managed to stir the skillet's contents carefully, but there was little doubt that she was practicing extreme control over her anger. Losing her temper was so tempting, but how powerful was he at the mind tricks a Jedi could use? They were not that far from the man's personal quarters.

As her rage spiked like his own, Anakin had wrapped the forced-calm of his presence around her in as much of a shield as he could, doing his best to hide his wife's reaction from everyone else with the Force. He waited until she stopped feeling like such a wall of rage, until her presence subsided into something calmer, and he nodded slowly. "Obscene is a good word for it," he agreed softly. "And I'm glad you didn't -- I wouldn't have been _capable_ of listening. That's one of the things -- one of the things our grandson pulled out of my mind. 

"I knew that was going to be your response," he added. 

She gave him a sharp smile that reminded him of their near execution on Geonosis. "Did you now?" She set the spoon down to get bowls for their breakfast, leaving the food to finish heating for those last few moments. "I have studied to be a politician all my life; I can and will hide this. However, I think I will send for Sabé to join me. She is the best of my ladies at helping me plot."

"Of course I knew," Anakin replied, watching that dangerous smile of hers with another flash of adoration. "I even managed to guess most of the reasons you were going to list. And... I think having Sabé with you would be an _excellent_ idea." 

For several reasons. One of which was that Sabé was dangerous and ruthless when it came to protecting Padmé, which was likely to be necessary, given -- 

He went very, very still. "All the times you've wound up in or almost in Separatist hands..." 

She nodded as she spooned out the food. "Anakin, it goes back further than that. Palpatine threw his weight behind me to get me elected as Queen to begin with. Eirtaé was the favored candidate." She looked him in the eyes as she slid his bowl to him. "I believe I was meant to die in the Invasion, but he picked up on the connection we had created. And then furthered it, so I could be a pawn against you, in time.

"It doesn't change that I love you with all of my heart, Ani. But I am aware we were manipulated."

Anakin had tensed at the mention of her death, at the idea of that intention... but it was those last words that had him flinching most. If it wasn't for her emphatic, determined 'I love you with all of my heart', he might have outright drawn back. "I know," he answered, watching her. "It... Loving you is as much a part of me as breathing -- and at least I have that we never spoke much of you?" 

Padmé came and settled beside him with her food, leaning into his shoulder. "Ani, what he did to make certain I would be your vulnerability doesn't matter to me except that he had, again, planned on me being used to further his goals. You are my husband, and together? We're going to feed him to the Abyss."

Anakin nodded slowly, his arm wrapping around her waist to hold her close. "I -- Yes. Yes we are. And that he was fool enough to try to use _you_... Well. Just proves he's not half as smart or as cunning as he thinks he is, doesn't it?" 

They were all right. _They_ were fine, and their children were going to grow up together, in a world free of the Sith.

"It means he thinks we're both, ultimately, victims… and neither one of us does victim very well," she reminded him. "So eat, and then go to the Council for your business, while I start my own machinations."

She was so practical, so rational. Everything he wasn't.

"You're right. We don't." He nodded, kissed her lightly, and set about demolishing the bowl in front of him. "I'll leave Artoo here -- if he doesn't mind -- he's got a good hour or so of our grandson and Ahsoka playing around recorded.

"We thought it would be too dangerous to bring him to Coruscant, but... I wanted you to at least get to see him." 

She kissed him on the cheek. "I appreciate that. And honestly, I would not risk a youngling anywhere near that man, now that I know, so thank you for leaving him with Ahsoka. She's good at taking care of our family." She said the last with a wry smile, for the padawan's attempts to look after her master and for the help she'd given to Padmé.

"No," Anakin agreed. "Neither would I. And... yes, yes she is. She's good with him, too." 

"I'm not surprised." She continued to eat, working through it slowly, as she let her brain trickle over which Senators she should have Sabé dig into; they would probably be easier to find corruption on than the Chancellor, but might lead to him.

Anakin nodded and finished off his bowl, tucking it into the cleaner unit without ever leaving her side. He brought his vambrace up to rest on the table, though, and tapped it until the holo of the boy formed up in front of them. He wanted to share her first sight of the boy with her. The rest of it could all wait, but that... he wanted to see her face. 

Padmé focused off of the politics and on that holo instantly, her face going so soft and gentle as she saw a piece of their shared future. "I think he's got your jawline, your eyes?" she said after a long moment of just looking at the boy.

"I think so," Anakin agreed, "but that's more your hair, I think. And definitely your convictions, your passion." 

She gave him a look. "You've never heard yourself speak about slavery or the Vod'e or piloting, if you think all his passion comes from me."

Anakin made a quietly amused noise, pressing a kiss to her cheek. "If you say so, love. ...and I _really_ should head for the Temple; this is going to be bad enough without me being late." 

"Alright, Ani." She stood long enough to embrace him fully, with a kiss that was long and unhurried, before turning him loose to go be a Jedi.

Someday… someday that would not mean quite so many separations.

+++


End file.
